Muslim Women Main Target of Anti-Islamic Violence in the Netherlands

TEHRAN (IQNA) – A hotline set up to record incidents of anti-Islamic physical and verbal violence in the Netherlands received 158 reports last year, according to the organization’s annual report.

Most – 54 – took place in January in the wake of the attacks on the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. There was a second surge in November after the Paris attacks, the Meld Islamoobie hotline said.

In two-thirds of the cases, women with headscarves were the victims and in three in 10 cases the women had been physically attacked. In six out of 10 cases, the attackers were white men, the Dutch News reported.

In one in 10 cases, a mosque was the target and in 4% a private family home. These threats ranged from warnings to leave the area to attempted arson.

In almost six in 10 cases, the victim or organization involved had not reported the incident to the police.

There has been a surge in Islamophobic incidents in Western European countries in recent months, especially after terrorist attacks in Paris and Brussels.