Anti-Muslim incidents in France have seen a marked increase since the attacks at French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. Over 55 anti-Muslim actions and threats have been reported to police in the past two weeks, according to Ministry of the Interior data. These include attacks on mosques and Muslim businesses, arson, hate speech, racist graffiti, vandalism, discrimination, physical assault, threats with firearms, and the murder of Mohamad al-Maquli, who was stabbed to death in his own home.
“The attacks in Paris occurred in a very Islamophobic and racist context in France,” said Elsa Ray, spokesperson for the Collective Against Islamophobia in France (CCIF), an advocacy group which has recorded reports of over 66 anti-Muslim attacks (not necessarily reported to the police) in the past two weeks. “The number [of anti-Muslim attacks] has been increasing over the past few years because hate speech and stigmatizing discourse on Muslims have been a global trend and the French government has done nothing to counter this problem, to counter discrimination and violence toward Muslims."
Anti-Muslim violence and discrimination have been steadily increasing in France over the past few years. According to data from the French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM), the official representative body of Islam in France, 116 Islamophobic acts and threats were reported to police in 2010, 155 in 2011, 203 in 2012, and 226 in 2013, although they warn numbers are likely under-reported.
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