A new report released on August 6 warned of an alarming surge in hate incidents across Canada since the attack by Hamas on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, with Islamophobic and anti-Palestinian hate crimes spiking by as much as 1,800% in some regions.

The report, titled “Documenting the ‘Palestine Exception’” and authored by Nadia Hasan of York University’s Islamophobia Research Hub, outlines what it calls a “sharp and dangerous” rise in Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian racism (APR) and anti-Arab racism (AAR) over the past 21 months.

“In the aftermath of Oct. 2023, Canada saw a rise in anti-Palestinian racism, Islamophobia and anti-Arab racism that affects many areas of life and work for Canadians,” Hasan said during a news conference in Ottawa.

The report also calls on all levels of government in Canada to officially recognize May 15 as Nakba Day. Palestinians mark the day after Israel declared independence in 1948 as the beginning of the destruction of their homeland.

“Provincial governments should develop curriculum, train staff and educate students on Palestinian culture, identity and history, including the history of the Nakba,” the report said.

It also wants all levels of government to “recognize and adopt” a definition of anti-Palestinian racism (APR) “as a distinct and detrimental form of racism that operates at multiple levels of state and society.”

Nadia Hasan said recognizing both Nakba Day and an official definition for APR would set Canada apart from other countries.

“These are important things for Canada to take very seriously,” Hasan said. “I think it would be a first and an important step for Canada to lead on.”

Based on consultations with 16 Canadian organizations, public data and media reports, the report revealed that Toronto Police Services saw a 1,600% year-over-year increase in anti-Palestinian and Islamophobic hate crimes between Oct. 7 and Nov. 20, 2023.

According to Statistics Canada, a 94% spike in anti-Muslim hate crimes and a 52% rise in hate crimes against Arabs and West Asians were recorded in 2023.

The National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) reported a 1,300% increase in Islamophobia cases in the month after Oct. 7, rising to 1,800% over the year.

The Muslim Legal Support Centre (MLSC) documented 474 human rights complaints between October 2023 and March 2024, including 345 cases of individuals who lost jobs or were placed on leave due to support for Palestine. The Legal Centre for Palestine reported a 600% increase in APR cases over eight months.

Noting that the report captures only a fraction of what communities are facing, Hasan said: “The information included in this report is based on interviews with these organizations, data that some of these organizations provided, publicly available data, as well as media reports from Oct. 2023 to Nov. 2024.”

Amira Elghawaby, Canada’s Special Representative on Combating Islamophobia, warned that the findings demand urgent action.

“We see it in the censorship and silencing of Canadians who defend Palestinian human rights with real consequences on their livelihoods and on their futures,” she said.

Stressing that such incidents continue to occur daily across Canada and urging that they be confronted, she said: “Old tropes that surged after 9/11 are back, amplified by the far right and others, and used again to dehumanize our communities, especially Palestinian-Muslim and Arab-Canadians.”

Download the full report HERE.

Source: Anadolu Agency