Alarm in Spain over increase in hate crimes, Islamophobia

Alarm in Spain over increase in hate crimes, Islamophobia

Hate crimes and religious intolerance such as Islamophobia are on the rise in Spain, according to figures from the country’s interior ministry and the Movement Against Intolerance. That group said there is also a rise in anti-Spanish sentiment in Catalonia.

Religious discrimination and hate crimes are on the rise in Spain, and are being pushed by rhetoric from far-right political movements. The country’s interior ministry sounded the alarm in its most recent report, which revealed a 120 percent increase in incidents connected to crimes of religious intolerance in 2017, with 103 cases registered compared to 47 the previous year.

Many of the crimes were related to Islamophobia in Catalonia, where the majority of the two million Muslims living in Spain reside, and where there are 317 mosques. The region saw a 307 percent increase in such crimes compared to 2016.

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