UK religious hate crime hits record high over Gaza war

‘Appalling levels of anti-Semitic and Islamophobic hate crimes are stain on our society’

LONDON: Religious hate crime in England and Wales rose by a record 25 percent in the last year, fuelled by a spike since the start of the war in Gaza, government data showed on Thursday.

The highest annual figure of religious hate crimes in over a decade was due to a rise in offences “against Jewish people and to a lesser extent Muslims” since the Hamas attack of October 7 last year, the interior ministry said.

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Overall, there were 140,561 hate crimes - defined as an offence based on a person’s race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, disability or transgender identity - recorded by the police in the 12 months to March.

Most - 98,799 or 70 per cent - were racially motivated.

Both the overall and race hate crime figures are down five per cent on the previous 12 months.

But religious hate crimes surged from 8,370 in 2022-23 to nearly 10,500 - the highest annual figure since data collection began in 2012.

Hate crimes against Jewish people more than doubled to 3,282 while there were also 3,866 hate crimes against Muslims.

“The appalling levels of anti-Semitic and Islamophobic hate crimes outlined in today’s figures are a stain on our society,” said interior minister Yvette Cooper.

She promised to tackle “this toxic hatred wherever it is found”, adding: “We must not allow events unfolding in the Middle East to play out in increased hatred and tension here on our streets.

“Those who push this poison - offline or online - must face the full force of the law.”

The latest data comes just days after marches and memorials took place across the country to mark the first anniversary of Hamas’s attack against Israel and Israel’s retaliation in Gaza, which the group controls.

British faith leaders, including from Jewish and Muslim communities, have called for the public to reject “prejudice and hatred in all its forms”.

Police in England and Wales recorded a fall in hate crimes on the basis of sexual orientation, disability, and against transgender people.