Muslim coalition launches UN bid against Macron's "Islamophobic" crackdown

AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): A global coalition of Muslim organizations have submitted a formal complaint to the UN Human Rights Council demanding immediate legal action against France over the violation of its Muslim citizens’ rights.

Amid deepening concerns over state-backed French Islamophobia, a global coalition of Muslim NGOs has teamed up to take on the government. 36 Muslim organizations from 13 countries have submitted a joint complaint to the UN Human Rights Council, urging them to take action against France's "increasingly hostile policies."

The UK based Muslim Public Affairs Committee was one of the groups that signed the complaint.

Tensions between the French President Emmanuel Macron and the Muslim world has been at an all-time high since last year.

When Macron introduced new legislation targeting so-called "Islamic Extremism" and defended deeply offensive caricatures insulting Islam's holy Prophet.

The caricatures led to furious worldwide protests, while the anti-Islamism laws paved way for a local crackdown, which saw: 76 mosques forced to close, the country's biggest Muslim charity and an anti-Islamophobia organization banned, dozens arrested and hundreds of planned deportations.

In October, the founder of BarakaCity, Idriss Sihamedi, experienced first-hand France's new approach. His home was violently raided by riot police after he condemned Islamophobic government ministers and an anti-Islam activist on Twitter.

The passionate street protests may have stopped but the Muslim response to Macron's anti-Muslim activities hasn't finished yet. More action is being planned including an additional complaint to the European Union over French behavior with the hope of forcing Macron into a U-turn.

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