Hate crimes against Muslims up 67 percent last year, FBI says

Reported hate crimes againstMuslims rose last year to their highest number since the aftermath of the Sept 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, according to FBI statistics released onMonday.

Overall, the total number of hate crimes against all groups reported by law enforcement agencies to the FBI increased from 5,479 in 2014 to 5,850 last year. That remains far lower than the numbers seen in the early 2000s, but the FBI release comes amid numerous reports of attacks based on race and religion following last week’s presidential election.

The most recent reporting covers calendar year 2015, which included the terror attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California, as well as Republican Donald Trump’s call for a ban on all Muslims entering the US. All of those, however, didnotoccuruntil the final two months of the year.

It’s not yet known whether Trump plans to implement such a ban now that he has won the presidency. Critics say his pledge has contributed to anti-Muslim sentiment.

Last year, there were 257 reported incidents of antiMuslim bias compared to 154 the year before, a 67 percent increase. The number of reported hate crimes against Muslims peaked at 481 in2001. Ibrahim Hooper,

Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said he was not surprised to see the large increase in 2015 and said he expects the trend to continue.

“We saw a spike in antiMuslim incidents nationwide beginning toward the end of 2015. That spike has continued until today and even accelerated after the election of Trump,” Hooper said.

There have been reports of racist and anti-religious incidents around the country since the Nov 8 election.

Two students at a school in Pennsylvania held a Donald Trump sign in a hallway as someone shouted “white power”, while at San Diego State University, authorities said a Muslim woman wearing a hijab had her vehicle stolen by two men who made comments about Trump’s election.

That spike has continued and even accelerated after the election of Trump.”

spokesman for Council on American-Islamic relations

SERGEANT SAM SHEPHERD VIA REUTERS A Royal New Zealand Air Force member helps evacuate a toddler and others aboard a helicopter from Kaikoura on Tuesday.