Shabana Mahmood, Labour’s shadow secretary of state for justice and one of the first Muslim women to be elected to the House of Commons, has warned of an “explosion” in Islamophobia not being reported to police.

It comes amid a 365 percent surge in anti-Muslim hate incidents across the UK since the start of the Israel-Hamas war.

She said: “There’s been an explosion of Islamophobia since October 7 – but there’s also a huge underreporting of the issue.”

“In my constituency, people report it to me but not the police. They kind of just put it down to the price you pay for being a Muslim in this country, (but) reporting is then what drives police policy, social policy and potential legislation. We all have a role to play.”

Ms Mahmood made the comments after the recent screening of HIJABI, a documentary created by BAFTA award-winning filmmaker, Samir Mehanovic, at the House of Commons.

The documentary charts the journeys of five British women who choose to wear the hijab and their experiences of Islamophobia in the UK and was unveiled to mark the International Day To Combat Islamophobia and International Women’s Day.

The heartwrenching story of a Muslim grandmother left devastated after an Islamophobic attack by teenagers and forced to flee Britain formed part of the testimonies heard in the film.

During a panel discussion after the screening, Ms Mahmood, who has been MP for Birmingham Ladywood since 2010, added: “Islamophobia has passed the dinner party test – it’s seen as acceptable. This is not just a Muslim problem, it should be addressed by all of society.”

According to Tell Mama, an organization dedicated to fighting Islamophobia, 65 percent of all incidents target women, with those who wear a hijab or niqab especially vulnerable.

Lee Anderson, the former Tory deputy chairman, was suspended from his party last month after accusing Sadiq Khan, the Labour mayor of London, of being controlled by Islamists.

Mr Anderson has refused to apologise for the remarks despite Rishi Sunak, Britain’s first Asian prime minister, labelling them “wrong”.

Speaking after the screening, Labour MP Afzal Khan said: “With Islamophobic hate crime having trebled since October and senior members of the Conservative Party spouting Islamophobia through the media in recent weeks, there has never been a more pressing time to listen to the testimonies of visibly Muslim women in Britain.

A government spokesperson told The Independent: “British Muslim women make a huge contribution to the United Kingdom and in strengthening the ties that bind our country together.

“It is unacceptable for anyone to feel unsafe while practising their religion and we take a zero-tolerance approach to anti-Muslim hatred.

“We expect the police to fully investigate all hate crimes and work with the Crown Prosecution Service to make sure the cowards who commit these abhorrent offences feel the full force of the law.”

Shaista Aziz, who was among the first Labour councillors to resign in protest over Keir Starmer’s response to the Gaza attacks said: “When it comes to Islamophobia, there’s rightly lots of focus on the government and what is they are doing and not doing. There’s no focus though, on the man who wants to become the next leader of this country: Keir Starmer.”

A recent poll by HOPE not Hate revealed that 58 percent of Conservative Party members think Islam is a threat to the British way of life while Labour’s support amongst British Muslims has plummeted amid major concerns about Sir Keir Starmer’s handling of the Gaza war.

London-based charity Islamophobia Response Unit (IRU) reports that many Islamophobia incidents have involved people being targeted over their support for Palestine, as the Israel-Hamas war spirals on.

Source: The Independent