BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 27. Islamophobia in France has reached alarming proportions, the president of the Grand Mosque of Strasbourg in France, Saïd Aalla, said during an international conference on "Islamophobia in Focus: Unveiling Bias, Shattering Stigmas, Trend reports.
“Islamophobia is not a phenomenon unique to France. On the contrary, it affects almost all Western countries. In recent years, however, the phenomenon has taken on a particularly alarming scale and form in France. Until recently, open hostility toward Islam and Muslims was mainly limited to extreme right-wing political parties,” he noted.
According to him, a dramatic transformation has recently taken place: the rhetoric of Islamophobia has spread to areas previously untouched by such hatred.
“Islamophobia now manifests itself in the statements of politicians - both men and women - who position themselves as democrats, as well as in the mainstream media, which, under the guise of freedom of expression, give extensive airtime and space to propaganda speeches. Increasingly, this rhetoric is supported by researchers, academics, businessmen, journalists and, of course, ordinary citizens,” Saïd Aalla emphasized.