SYDNEY (Dispatches) – There has been a massive increase in cases of Islamophobia and threats to the Muslim community living in Australia since Hamas’ Oct. 7 operation on the Zionist regime, according to an organization that tracks anti-Islam sentiment in the country.
The Islamophobia Register Australia said reports of anti-Muslim hate had increased tenfold since Hamas’ operation and the Zionist regime’s brutal carnage, The New York Times reported.
Sharara Attai, the executive director of the group, told Australian media that the trend was “deeply troubling” and that it was “even more concerning” that many incidents had probably gone unreported.
Pro-Palestinian marches, which have drawn tens of thousands of Australians, have been held across the country in cities including Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Perth.
Protesters have demanded a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and have denounced the Zionist regime’s strikes on civilians in the enclave as “genocide.”
Jessica Morrison, executive officer at the Australia Palestine Advocacy Network, last month said there had been “lots of stories from lots of young people” being targeted, particularly at schools, and that the Palestinian community had been “distressed” by the discourse surrounding the violence in Gaza.
She added: “Younger Palestinian people at the moment are feeling very uncomfortable because of what’s going on.”