Abdul Adil

Islamophobic attacks in France are on the rise, French Council of Muslim Faith President, Anouar Kbibeche, said on May 16.

Speaking at the 33rd French Council of the Muslim Faith conference in Le Bourget, Kbibeche said: “The increase in Islamophobia has come after attacks in France last year.”

“Attacks on Muslim sanctuaries have gone up despite increase in security measures. A small mosque in Ajaccio has recently been damaged. Apart from this, a number of attacks have also been launched on individual Muslims.”

The Council’s Vice-President, Ahmet Ogras, urged Muslims to participate in the politics.

“We are elements of this society as Muslims in France. We should be able to express our opinions and join political parties. We need to increase power of representation of Muslims by expressing ourselves,” Ogras added.

Union of Islamic Organisations of France President, Amar Lasfar, said: “We extend our helping hands to everybody whatever their religion, culture and values are, in the name of togetherness and a prosperous future.”

In January, President of France’s Collective Against Islamophobia Abdallah Zekri, said anti-Muslim acts increased to 905 in 2015 from 704 in 2014.

Zekri said these were the highest level of attacks since the Collective was established in 2011.