Muslim women are most often target of anti-Islamic violence

mosque in the NetherlandsA hotline set up to record incidents of anti-Islamic physical and verbal violence received 158 reports last year, according to the organisation’s annual report.

Most – 54 – took place in January in the wake of the murders at the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. There was a second surge in November after the Paris attacks, the Meld Islamofobie hotline said.

In two-thirds of the cases, women with headscarves were the victims and in three in 10 cases the women had been physically attacked. In six out of 10 cases, the attackers were white men.

In one in 10 cases, a mosque was the target and in 4% a private family home. These threats ranged from warnings to leave the area to attempted arson.

In almost six in 10 cases, the victim or organisation involved had not reported the incident to the police.

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