Muslims in Europe feel vulnerable to rising hostility over Israel-Gaza

Source: Reuters

Muslims in Europe feel vulnerable to rising hostility over Israel-Gaza

By Layli Foroudi, Thomas Escritt, Andrew Macaskill and Sarah Marsh
November 29, 2023 1:04 AM EST Updated 11 hours ago

PARIS/BERLIN/LONDON, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Jian Omar, a Berlin lawmaker of Kurdish-Syrian background, feels unprotected by police after suffering hate-filled flyers mixed with glass and faeces, a broken window and a hammer-wielding assailant since the deadly Oct. 7 Hamas attack in Israel.

The three incidents at Omar’s constituency office form part of increased hostility to Muslims in Europe fanned at times by politicians since the Hamas assault, more than 30 community leaders and advocates consulted by Reuters said, adding that incidents were under-reported because of low trust in police.

"I feel really alone and if somebody with the status of an elected official can’t be protected then how must others feel?” said Omar. He said police were investigating but had told him they could not offer extra security at his premises.

"Imagine if a white German politician was attacked by a migrant or a refugee,” he said, suggesting security forces would do more in such cases. Berlin police did not reply to a request for comment.

Hate crime has risen dramatically in Europe since the Oct. 7 ...

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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/muslims-europe-feel-vulnerable-rising-hostility-over-israel-gaza-2023-11-29/

Alternate no-paywall link: https://news.yahoo.com/muslims-europe-feel-vulnerable-rising-070300314.html