Alwaght- Islamophobic attacks in the West have seen a dramatic surge following the Paris atrocities with countries such as Britain witnessing a sharp rise in attack on Muslims. A study by the Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) recently noted that the British government policies are fueling a worsening "environment of hate" in which abuse, discrimination, and even the threat of violent assault have become the "normal experience and expectation" for Muslims living in the UK.
The study into the day-to-day experiences of British Muslims, carried out by the Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC), found a sharp rise in the number of people reporting verbal abuse and an increase in the number of physical attacks since the survey was last undertaken in 2010. Muslims have criticized the government and the media for stoking Islamophobia. To get a brief analysis on this issue The Alwaght news website has conducted and interview with Dr.Kamal al-Helbawy, founder of the Muslim League in Britain, secretary-general of the Islamic Unity Forum.
Alwaght: Over the recent years there has been an upsurge in Islamophobia in the West especially in Britain including the ban on Muslims from traveling to the US.
Al-Helbawy: I would like to say that Islamophobia is a disease afflicting the Western world and if not treated there will be consequences. For instance recently in France the government decided to close some Mosques. Such measures will not solve the problem of terrorism or violence. My advice is that instead of closing the Mosques they should change the preachers or Imams. The second point is that, there is need to respect the beliefs of others. For instance the government in France imposes a ban on Hijab while it claims to follow the French principles of "Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity" (Liberté, Equalité, Fraternité). Therefore, freedom should apply for everyone.
Alwaght: Muslims in Britain have reportedly been boycotting a key government anti-extremism program known as prevent, why is this so?
Al-Helbawy: I think Muslims in the West have to play a role in fighting extremism, violence and terrorism. I am saddened by the fact that young Muslims are leaving Europe to joins terrorist groups such as ISIS. Moderate Muslims have a role to play in advising their children and families on the right path of Islam and not the distorted image of Islam.
Alwaght: Do you think government policies in the West are pushing young people to extremism and joining terrorist groups?
Al-Helbawy: There are some matters that need to be addressed. One such issue which makes Muslims feel insulted is the issue of Palestine. The Western countries stand by the Israeli regime which kills and oppresses Palestinians on a daily basis, destroys their farms, usurping their land etc. So it is very unfortunate that Western countries fail to understand that they are following a policy of double standards when it comes to the issue of Palestine. Such a policy is driving young Muslims to say the West is hypocritical in its approach and this makes them to look for wrong ways to vent their anger.
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Ansarullah
A Zaidi Shiite movement operating in Yemen. It seeks to establish a democratic government in Yemen.
Shiite
represents the second largest denomination of Islam. Shiites believe Ali (peace be upon him) to be prophet"s successor in the Caliphate.
Resistance
Axis of Resistances refers to countries and movements with common political goal, i.e., resisting against Zionist regime, America and other western powers. Iran, Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Hamas in Palestine are considered as the Axis of Resistance.
Persian Gulf Cooperation Council
A regional political u n i o n consisting of Arab states of the Persian Gulf, except for Iraq.
Taliban
Taliban is a Sunni fundamentalist movement in Afghanistan. It was founded by Mohammed Omar in 1994.
Wahhabism & Extremism
Wahhabism is an extremist pseudo-Sunni movement, which labels non-Wahhabi Muslims as apostates thus paving the way for their bloodshed.
Kurds
Kurds are an ethnic group in the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region, which spans adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. They are an Iranian people and speak the Kurdish languages, which form a subgroup of the Northwestern Iranian branch of Iranian languages.
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on 4 April 1949.
Islamic Awakening
Refers to a revival of the Islam throughout the world, that began in 1979 by Iranian Revolution that established an Islamic republic.
Al-Qaeda
A militant Sunni organization founded by Osama bin Laden at some point between 1988 and 1989
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Islamophobia Disease Afflicting West: Dr. Al Helbawy
