ON INTERNATIONAL DAY TO COMBAT ISLAMOPHOBIA, JUSTICE FOR ALL URGES GLOBAL ACTION TO “RESPECT EVERY PERSON’S DIGNITY” AMID SURGE IN ANTI-MUSLIM HATE AND VIOLANCE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NEW YORK – March 15, 2026 – As the world marks the fourth International Day to Combat Islamophobia, Justice For All today issued an urgent call for concrete action to protect Muslim communities. This year’s UN theme, “Respect Every Person’s Dignity,” resonates as data shows a record rise in anti-Muslim incidents globally, including a 70% increase in physical assaults in the United States alone.

Established by the UN General Assembly in 2022, March 15 commemorates the 2019 Christchurch mosque attacks. UN Secretary-General António Guterres emphasizes the need to “end the scourge of hatred,” highlighting institutional discrimination affecting the world’s two billion Muslims, 500 million of whom live as minorities in 149 countries.

“The United Nations was right to choose March 15th. We remember Christchurch not just to mourn, but to remind ourselves that Islamophobia is a lethal ideology,” said Imam Malik Mujahid, Justice For All President. “When we fail to combat dehumanization of Muslims, we pave the road to massacre. The UN theme must be the standard by which we hold every nation accountable.”

Justice For All, whose leadership includes Bosnian genocide survivors, draws direct lines from Islamophobic rhetoric that preceded Srebrenica to the targeting of Muslim minorities today. Its 2023 report, Islamophobia Leads to the Persecution and Genocide of Muslim Minorities [PUT IN LINK TO THE REPORT], applies both the UN Genocide Conventions and Rome Statutes along with the “10 Stages of Genocide” framework to contemporary crises.

“Secretary-General Guterres appointed a Special Envoy to Combat Islamophobia in 2025, yet that office remains critically underfunded,” said Imam Saffet Catovic, Justice For All’s Director of UN Operations and former Bosnian Diplomat. “We call on member states to provide the resources necessary for the Special Envoy to intervene before tensions escalate into atrocities.”

The organization’s Director of Advocacy, Hena Zuberi, highlighted the “war-terror-Islamophobia” cycle identified in Brown University research, which has contributed to an estimated 4.5 million deaths in post-9/11 conflicts. “Islamophobia is weaponized to justify wars and silence critics of human rights abuses,” Zuberi said. “We see a dangerous double standard where Quran burnings are dismissed as free speech while Palestinians are dehumanized, killed and Uyghur Muslims are erased.”

Justice For All is calling for:

-Full Implementation of UN Resolution 76/254: Including funding for the Special Envoy and adoption of the “10 Stages of Genocide” framework to assess risks to Muslim minority communities globally.

-Legislative Action: Passage of laws, such as the Combating International Islamophobia Act, that criminalize Islamophobic acts and prohibit religious and ethnic profiling.

-Tech Accountability: Urgent action by digital platforms to remove content that incites violence against Muslims, applying consistent standards across all forms of religious hatred.

-Educational Reform: Integration of resources like the UNESCO eBook on combating Islamophobia into public school curricula to counter stereotypes from an early age.

Founded from the historic Bosnia Task Force, Justice For All brings a survivor-led perspective to fighting Islamophobia. “We know what happens when the world stays silent,” added President Mujahid. “An attack on one group is an attack on the dignity of all humanity.”

Media Contact:

Hena Zuberi

hena@justiceforall.org

Related Resources:

Islamophobia Leads to the Persecution and Genocide of Muslim Minorities (2023)

About Justice For All: A faith-based human rights organization accredited to the United Nations with over 30 years of experience protecting persecuted communities and advocating for genocide prevention.