WEB DESK
Germany’s move to give Islamophobic crimes their own special category in police records is being welcomed by leading experts and Muslim community leadersin the country.
Aiman Mazyek, the chairman of Germany’s Central Council of Muslims, said that for many years they have sought such a measure to help address the growing number of verbal and physical attacks on Muslims.
“We will finally be able to have reliable figures on Islamophobia,” Mazyek told Anadolu Agency, praising the move by German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative-left coalition government.
“German authorities and police will now be more sensible towards Islamophobic crimes. Above all, the growing anti-Muslim racism in Germany will not be subsumed under xenophobia anymore,” he added.
“German authorities and police will now be more sensible towards Islamophobic crimes. Above all, the growing anti-Muslim racism in Germany will not be subsumed under xenophobia anymore,” he added.
Germany’s police have long been criticized for ignoring the Islamophobic character of many hate crimes and often classifying them as petty offenses or politically motivated crimes.- Anadolu