Sat 06 December 2025:

A recent survey released by a French rights group on Thursday revealed an increase in religion-based discrimination, particularly against Muslims.

According to the new 2024 edition of the Access to Rights survey conducted by the Defenseur des droits (Defender of Rights), 7% of more than 5,000 respondents reported experiencing discrimination based on religion in the past five years, up from 5% in 2016.

During the 2024 legislative elections, the Defender of Rights also observed a 53% spike between May and June in calls to 3928, the hotline dedicated to combating discrimination.

The survey found that 31% of respondents reported witnessing discrimination based on religion in 2024, compared with 21% in 2016.

“The rise in discrimination on religious grounds appears to be observed across all religions. However, it is reported far more frequently by people who say they are Muslim, or who believe they are perceived as such,” the report underscored.

According to the survey, 34% of Muslims reported experiencing religion-based discrimination, up from 27% in 2016.

In 2024, 19% of people who identified with another religion and 4% of Christians reported being discriminated against for their religious beliefs.

“The population that is Muslim (or perceived as such) therefore appears to be the most affected by discrimination based on religion: not only are these individuals proportionally more likely to experience such discrimination, but they also tend to face it more frequently as a repeated personal experience,” the report added.

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Islamophobia increases around Europe

Islamophobia often takes the form of online hate, which is relatively high in Europe compared to other regions across the globe.

Prejudice, discrimination, and hostility toward Muslims or Islam. It manifests as hate speech, violence, job/housing bias, and policies that target Muslim practices.

“August and September witnessed a steady increase in Islamophobic manifestations, particularly in the United Kingdom, where debates over immigration policy intensified, and in Germany, where far-right demonstrations targeting Muslim communities gained momentum,” the OIC report said.

Muslims represent the second-largest religious group in the EU, with around 26 million living in the bloc.

In the EU, nearly one in two Muslims said they experience racial discrimination, up from 39% in 2016, according to the latest report of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA).

This was especially felt in the labour and housing markets in the five years before the survey took place in 2022.

The FRA also pointed out that there has been a noticeable increase in anti-Muslim incidents in the EU since the Hamas attacks in Israel in October 2023, particularly in Austria, Belgium and Bulgaria.

For instance, Austria experienced an increase in anti-Muslim hate crimes, with over 1,500 incidents reported in 2023 — the highest number since 2015.

Austria (71%), Germany (68%) and Finland (63%) also reported the highest rates of discrimination among 13 EU countries between 2017 and 2022.

What forms does Islamophobia take?

Globally, far-right campaigns represent the largest category of incidents, at 25%.

Hate speech follows closely as the second most common occurrence, representing about a fifth of all incidents.

Discrimination and verbal and physical assault share similar results, together accounting for more than a quarter of all incidents.

In the EU, France and Germany are considered hotspots for Islamophobia due to heightened levels of anti-Islam activity, according to the OIC report.

It said that the high rate of incidents can be attributed to the resurgence of far-right political movements in countries like France, Germany, and Sweden, where anti-immigration sentiment often manifests as Islamophobia.

The Gaza war since October 2023 exacerbated tensions, blending criticism of Israel with anti-Muslim bias. While not all criticism of Islam is Islamophobic, stereotyping Muslims as threats normalizes exclusion. Experts call for renewed EU anti-racism plans and better data to combat this growing issue.

However, Europe’s legal protections against discrimination are working to challenge and reduce Islamophobic attitudes and policies.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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