I urge British Muslims to attend Shoah memorials

I HAVE often said that the Holocaust was the turning point in European history, when hatred against minorities, particularly settled Jewish communities, came to forefront.

As we commemorate the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, we should remember that the German population, in many cases, purposefully turned a blind eye to the genocide of Jews, gypsies, the disabled and leftist political prisoners.

I have also said that antisemitism, which emanates from small sections of my co-religionists globally, is not sufficiently challenged.

Only in the last few years have British Muslims begun to stand up openly against hate targeted at British Jews, and I congratulate them, but in North Africa and parts of the Middle East, antisemitism is the default position for many.

Many British Jews are scared to mention this publicly for fear of being called ‘Islamophobic’, and it is up to Muslims to challenge this age-old hatred and to do it much more vocally.

Sadly, however, very few of my coreligionists were willing, pre-election, to challenge antisemitism in the Labour Party, but many were rightly vocal about anti-Muslim bigotry in parts of the Conservative membership and political leadership.

As more and more Muslims have been affected by anti-Muslim bigotry, there has been a creeping realisation that they must stand in solidarity with Jewish communities — especially as hate crimes have risen over the last five years against both communities.

With this in mind, understanding the Holocaust is an integral part of building strong and lasting relations with British Jewish communities, and so I once again make a call to my fellow co-religionists to find out more about the Holocaust and to take time to listen to how much it has shaped Jewish experiences in our country.

For within the Holocaust lies many truths and answers as to how people can turn against others and how propaganda can be used to mobilise the masses against “the dehumanised other”. I know that these words will resonate with many British Muslims since they feel that they have been in the social spotlight since 9/11.

This does not compare in any way to the events of the Holocaust, though it is a connecting point that can open a field of study and interest for British Muslims.

I would therefore urge Muslims to attend Holocaust Memorial Day events that are taking place across the country.

I would go even further and say that it is an Islamic duty to empathise and to stand with those who have suffered so much for so long.

With that in mind, I always reflect on those Jews who looked like me, dark in complexion and with black eyes and hair, who were killed because they were Jewish and deemed to be different and subhuman, who were picked out because they ate kosher food and celebrated customs and traditions different to those practised in Germany, who were blamed for the ills caused by Germany’s aggression in the First World War.

Any Muslim reading this would not fail to see that they themselves would have been targets had they been present in Germany at the time. British Muslims reading this may also connect with some of these physical attributes and traditions and how some perceive them today.

I therefore say to my co-religionists that you cannot understand yourselves fully if you do not understand and make efforts to know more about the Holocaust.

You cannot speak of fighting intolerance if you do not stand with our Jewish brothers and sisters at every step to counter antisemitism, and if you do not grasp the fact that your future is intricately linked to the protection of British Jews.

The Holocaust is not some distant event. It is relevant to everyone, particularly minority communities. It teaches us that our democracy is fragile and needs protection through collective action to defend our social values. It also confirms to many of us that genocide is not impossible if enough good people simply keep quiet when the flames of hate are fanned.

I therefore wait for the day when mosques in the UK honour Holocaust Memorial Day; that day is not a fantasy — it may well become a reality in the next decade.

Antisemitism is the default position for many in parts of the Middle East

It is an Islamic duty to empathise with those who have suffered for so long

Fiyaz Mughal was the Founder and Director of Faith Matters and is also an Independent Advisor to the Commission on Countering Extremism

PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES An imam lights a candle in memory of the victims of the Holocaust at the Jewish Museum in Moscow