Short answer
Mostly because of what a few people do in Islam's name, and how it is reported. Islam forbids terrorism, forced marriage, grooming and forced conversion. Those who do such things break Islam's law, which is called the Sharia. The Sharia exists to protect religion, life, the mind, offspring and property. FGM is an old custom that no verse of the Qur'an calls for. An MI5 study found many people involved in terrorism in Britain lacked religious literacy and could be called "religious novices". Many European jihadists had criminal records before they turned to violence. Studies show the news covers attacks by Muslims far more, and frames them as Islam's crimes. In America from 2006 to 2015, attacks by Muslims got on average 357% more coverage than other attacks. When anyone else does the same, the news often blames the person alone. Surveys show that most Muslims reject violence against civilians. Other charges, such as Aisha's marriage and apostasy, leave out the history and the law's limits. Islam asks only for fairness: judge it by its teaching, not by its worst followers.
Killing innocent peopleKilling one innocent person is like killing all mankind (5:32).
Forcing a woman to marryThe Prophet (ﷺ) annulled a marriage forced on a woman.
Cutting girls (FGM)No verse calls for it; Egypt's Dar al-Ifta says it is forbidden.
Grooming and abusing childrenIntoxicants, sex outside marriage and forced prostitution are all forbidden.
Forcing anyone to convertNo compulsion in religion (2:256).
A private person punishing someone for leaving IslamOnly a Muslim state's court could act.
Full explanation
A few people, against most Muslims
About two billion people are Muslims, a quarter of the world. Pew Research Center surveyed more than 38,000 Muslims in 39 countries. In most countries where it asked, about three quarters or more rejected suicide bombing and other violence against civilians. Across the world, a median of 72% said such acts are never justified. In a few countries, sizeable minorities disagreed. A US government report also looked at five years of deaths from terrorism. Where the victims' religion could be known, 82 to 97 per cent were Muslims. So those who kill in Islam's name go against most Muslims. And in those years, most victims of terrorism were Muslims.
Finds that the number of Muslims grew by 347 million from 2010 to 2020, to about 2 billion, more than all other religions combined, and that Muslims rose to 25.6 per cent of the world's population. Very little of this growth came from people becoming Muslim or leaving Islam as adults; most came from natural increase in a young population. Over the same years Hindus grew by 126 million, Christians by 122 million and Jews by nearly 1 million, while Buddhists fell by 19 million.
More than 38,000 face-to-face interviews with Muslims in 39 countries (2008-2012). "Muslims around the world strongly reject violence in the name of Islam." "In most countries where the question was asked, roughly three-quarters or more Muslims reject suicide bombing and other forms of violence against civilians." "Across the globe, a median of roughly seven-in-ten Muslims (72%)" say such acts are never justified. "Yet there are some countries in which substantial minorities think violence against civilians is at least sometimes justified."
The statistical annex says: "In cases where the religious affiliation of terrorism casualties could be determined, Muslims suffered between 82 and 97 percent of terrorism-related fatalities over the past five years."
What the Sharia really is
The law these people break is called the Sharia. The word means a path. Most of it is worship, good conduct and family life. A standard law book, Ibn Qudamah's al-Mughni, begins with purification and prayer, then charity, fasting and pilgrimage. Then come trade, inheritance and marriage. Al-Ghazali, a Muslim scholar who died in 1111, said the Sharia aims to protect five things. They are religion, life, the mind, offspring and property. Whatever protects these five is a good, and whatever destroys them is a harm to be prevented. The penalties people fear come in its later volumes. They are for a lawful court alone. Terror, forced marriage and the abuse of children destroy what the Sharia protects.
One of the standard reference works of Islamic law (Hanbali school). It opens with the Book of Purification and then Prayer, followed by funerals, charity, fasting and pilgrimage. Trade, inheritance, marriage and divorce follow. The books on injuries, blood-money and the fixed penalties (hudud) come in its later volumes.
In this work on the principles of Islamic law, al-Ghazali holds that the aim of the Sharia for mankind is to protect five things: their religion, their life, their mind, their offspring and their property. Whatever protects these five is a benefit (maslaha), and whatever destroys them is a harm to be prevented.
Ibn Qudamah, a Hanbali jurist, holds that, as a rule, no one may carry out a fixed penalty (hadd) except the ruler (imam) or the one he appoints to act for him. The only exception he allows is an old ruling on a master and his own slave, which has no application today.
| It protects | So it forbids |
|---|---|
| Religion | Forcing anyone to convert |
| Life | Killing the innocent |
| The mind | Intoxicants |
| Offspring | Sex outside marriage |
| Property | Taking what belongs to others |
Many attackers knew little of Islam
In 2008 MI5, Britain's security service, studied several hundred people involved in terrorism. The Guardian reported what it found. Many did not practise their faith regularly. Many knew so little of it that they could be called "religious novices". Some took drugs, drank and paid for sex, all forbidden in Islam. MI5 said there is evidence that a firm religious identity protects against turning to violence. In 2016 a news agency, the AP, studied about 3,000 entry forms of ISIS recruits. About 70% were listed as having only "basic" knowledge of Islamic law. Just 5% were rated as advanced students of Islam.
Reports a restricted MI5 briefing note by its behavioural science unit, based on case studies of "several hundred individuals known to be involved in, or closely associated with, violent extremist activity". "Far from being religious zealots, a large number of those involved in terrorism do not practise their faith regularly. Many lack religious literacy and could actually be regarded as religious novices." "Some are involved in drug-taking, drinking alcohol and visiting prostitutes. MI5 says there is evidence that a well-established religious identity actually protects against violent radicalisation." It also finds no more mental illness among them than in the general population, and that most of those over 30 have steady relationships and children.
The AP analysed the Islamic State entry forms of about 4,030 foreign recruits, most from 2013 and 2014; a little more than 3,000 recorded the recruit's knowledge of Shariah (Islamic law). "70 per cent of recruits were listed as having just 'basic' knowledge of Shariah"; around 24 per cent were "intermediate", "with just 5 per cent considered advanced students of Islam". "Five recruits were listed as having memorized the Qur'an."
- 70%Basic only
- 24%Intermediate
- 5%Advanced
Many had criminal pasts
Many European jihadists were criminals before they were extremists. In 2016 a research centre at King's College London studied this link. German police had details on 669 German fighters who went to Syria. Two-thirds of them had police records before they left. Belgium's top prosecutor said half of his country's jihadists had criminal records. Officials in Norway and the Netherlands put it at "at least 60 per cent". The study says ISIS "required practically no religious knowledge or learning". It offered such men what their gangs had: power, violence and adventure.
A study of European jihadists with criminal pasts. "German Federal Police stated that of the 669 German foreign fighters for whom they had sufficient information, two-thirds had police records prior to travelling to Syria". "The Belgian Federal Prosecutor said that half of his country's jihadists had criminal records prior to leaving for Syria." Officials from Norway and the Netherlands said that "at least 60 per cent" of their countries' jihadists had previously been involved in crime. Like the gangs some had belonged to, jihadist groups offered "power, violence, adventure and adrenaline"; "unlike al-Qaeda, Islamic State required practically no religious knowledge or learning".
Alone and adrift
The Global Terrorism Index is a yearly world report on terrorism of every kind. Its 2026 report finds that most attacks in the West are political, not religious. Among political attackers, the far left carried out more attacks over two decades, and the far right caused more deaths. Far-right activity in the West rose by 250% in five years. Fewer than 20% of recent attacks could be tied to a known terrorist group. Over the last five years, lone attackers of every cause carried out 93% of the deadly attacks in the West. The report finds young people there are drawn in mainly by feeling cut off and alone. It estimates that 87% of children drawn in had suffered neglect or psychological abuse.
On terrorism in the West: "Most attacks in the West are politically motivated." "Over the last two decades far-left groups and individuals have carried out more attacks, but attacks by far-right groups and individuals have led to more fatalities. It should be noted, however, that almost all of these attacks, across both ideological positions, were carried out by individuals who were not affiliated with a particular terrorist group." "Fewer than 20 per cent of attacks in recent years could be directly attributed to a known terrorist group." "Lone-wolf actors carried out 93 per cent of fatal terrorist attacks in the West over the last five years"; this figure covers attacks of every ideology. Extreme right-wing activity has risen sharply, "increasing by 250 per cent in the West over the last five years". On youth radicalisation: "In the West, alienation and social isolation are the key factors", and "an estimated 87 per cent of radicalised minors had a history of neglect or psychological abuse".
- 93%Deadly attacks by lone attackers
- Under 20%Attacks tied to a known group
- 250%Rise in far-right activity in five years
What the news shows in America
Researchers studied US news coverage of every terrorist attack in America from 2006 to 2015. There were 136 attacks. Attacks by Muslims got on average 357% more coverage than other attacks. This held after allowing for the target, the number killed and whether the attacker was arrested. Muslims carried out about 12.5% of the attacks, yet got more than half the coverage. Known attackers who were not Muslims carried out 47%. In the other 40%, no attacker was ever named. A US government report counted who carried out the deadly attacks. From 2001 to 2016, 85 extremist attacks in America killed people. The far right carried out 62 of them, or 73%. Islamist extremists carried out 23, or 27%. The far left killed no one. The number killed was close: 106 by the far right and 119 by Islamists, 49 of those in one attack in Orlando. Two political scientists, Erik Bleich and Maurits van der Veen, looked at the tone of the news. They studied 256,963 US newspaper articles mentioning Muslims or Islam, from 1996 to 2016. 80% of them were negative. For Catholics, Jews and Hindus, positive and negative articles were close to 50-50. The average one was more negative than 84% of articles in a random sample of US news.
Studies news coverage (LexisNexis Academic and CNN.com) of all terrorist attacks in the United States from 2006 to 2015, 136 attacks. "Controlling for target type, fatalities, and being arrested, attacks by Muslim perpetrators received, on average, 357% more coverage than other attacks." The authors call the perpetrator's religion the largest predictor of coverage, and say the disparities "may explain why members of the public tend to fear the 'Muslim terrorist' while ignoring other threats". In the paper's data, "Muslims perpetrated 12.5% of the attacks yet received 50.4% of the news coverage", and "the individual person(s) responsible for the attacks is unknown 40.4% of the time"; the rest were by known attackers who were not Muslim (the paper's three categories: "Perpetrator Known & Muslim; Perpetrator Known & Not Muslim; and Perpetrator Unknown"). The University of Alabama's report on the study adds: "Muslims committed on average 12.5 percent of the attacks yet received more than half of the news coverage."
"Of the 85 violent extremist incidents that resulted in death since September 12, 2001, far right wing violent extremist groups were responsible for 62 (73 percent) while radical Islamist violent extremists were responsible for 23 (27 percent). The total number of fatalities is about the same for far right wing violent extremists and radical Islamist violent extremists over the approximately 15-year period (106 and 119, respectively). However, 41 percent of the deaths attributable to radical Islamist violent extremists occurred in a single event--an attack at an Orlando, Florida night club in 2016." "According to the ECDB, activities of far left wing violent extremist groups did not result in any fatalities during this period." The figures run to 31 December 2016 and come from the US Extremist Crime Database (ECDB) at START, University of Maryland.
The authors of Covering Muslims: American Newspapers in Comparative Perspective (Oxford University Press, 2022) summarise their study of 256,963 articles mentioning Muslims or Islam in 17 US national, regional and tabloid newspapers from 1 January 1996 to 31 December 2016, measured against a random sample of 48,283 articles. "80% of all articles related to Muslims were negative." "For Catholics, Jews and Hindus, the proportion of positive and negative articles was close to 50-50." The average US article mentioning Muslims or Islam "is more negative than 84% of articles in our random sample."
- 136Attacks
- 12.5%By Muslims
- 357%More coverage for an attack by a Muslim
What the news shows in Britain
In Britain, Cardiff University studied 974 newspaper stories about British Muslims from 2000 to 2008. About two thirds showed Muslims as a threat, a problem, or both. The idea that Islam is "dangerous, backward or irrational" was in 26% of stories. Only 2% said that Muslims supported Britain's main moral values. Mentions of radical Muslims outnumbered mentions of moderate Muslims by 17 to one. In 2026 a centre set up by the Muslim Council of Britain studied 40,913 articles from 30 British news outlets in 2025. 70% linked Muslims or Islam with negative behaviour. Nearly half showed measurable bias. Of the biased articles, 44% left out context the reader needed. Bias was heaviest in outlets such as The Spectator, GB News, The Telegraph and the Daily Mail. The BBC had the lowest. Yet the same centre found a different gap when it studied a year of the BBC's reporting on the war in Gaza. It looked at more than 35,000 BBC articles and broadcasts. Online, each Israeli death was mentioned 33 times more often than each Palestinian death. On air, the gap was 19 times. The word "massacre" was used 18 times more often for Israeli victims.
A content analysis of 974 British newspaper articles about British Muslims from 2000 to 2008, commissioned by Channel 4. "36% of stories about British Muslims overall are about terrorism." "The bulk of coverage of British Muslims - around two thirds - focuses on Muslims as a threat (in relation to terrorism), a problem (in terms of differences in values) or both." "The idea that Islam is dangerous, backward or irrational is present in 26% of stories. By contrast, only 2% of stories contained the proposition that Muslims supported dominant moral values." "References to radical Muslims outnumber references to moderate Muslims by 17 to one."
A study of 40,913 articles about Muslims and Islam from 30 UK news outlets published in 2025. "Across all 40,913 articles analysed, 70% contain information that associate Muslims and/or Islam with negative aspects or behaviours. While negative stories about Muslims and Islam are not inherently biased, this 70% figure suggests a deeply concerning trend." Nearly half of the articles (about 20,000) contained varying degrees of bias. "44% of the 18,614 biased articles analyzed in this study contained contextual omissions." The Spectator, GB News, The Daily Telegraph, The Jewish Chronicle, Daily Express, The Sun, Daily Mail and The Times scored worst on its bias measures; "The BBC consistently records the lowest or near-lowest rates of bias".
A study of BBC output on the war in Gaza from October 2023 to October 2024: 3,873 online articles and 32,092 broadcast segments. It found "Israeli deaths mentioned 33 times more per fatality in online articles and 19 times more in broadcasts" than Palestinian deaths. The BBC used "massacre" 18 times more often for Israeli victims, and words such as "atrocities", "slaughter" and "brutal" four times more often. The BBC replied that it would study the findings, but that "we do not think due impartiality can be measured by counting words".
- 70%Negative
- Nearly 50%Biased
- 44%Of the biased ones lacked context
- 33 timesOnline
- 19 timesOn air
More fear, for longer
In 2024 four researchers studied 10,233 articles on terrorist attacks. They came from six British and American papers, including The Guardian, The Telegraph and The New York Times, from 2003 to 2018. Attacks by Muslims drew more fearful, negative words. They also stayed in the news longer. Coverage of attacks by others fell away faster after the event. The authors say such coverage makes one kind of violence seem more threatening than others.
A computational study of "10,233 newspaper articles published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, The Guardian, The Daily Mail, and The Telegraph from 2003–2018". It finds two disparities: "Muslim attacks tend to elicit more negatively valenced emotional language, which may cultivate fear and stigmatisation in Muslim communities", and "such attacks garner greater sustained media attention over time compared to those committed by non-Muslims, which exhibit a sharper decline in coverage beyond the immediate aftermath". The authors say such coverage helps to construct "particular forms of ideological violence as more existentially threatening".
The same act, a different label
Kimberly Powell, who teaches communication studies at Luther College in Iowa, studied how US news covered terrorism. She found a pattern that held from 2001 to 2016. Attacks by Muslims were shown as part of a wider threat from Islam. Attackers who were not Muslims were shown as troubled loners, often mentally ill. In 2015 a man attacked a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado. A Washington Post headline called him "adrift and alienated". The names given to attackers follow the same pattern. When extremist Israeli settlers attack Palestinians in the West Bank, the British government speaks of "extremist settlers" and "settler violence". It does not name their faith. In October 2026 the head of MI5 said the threat of attack in Britain had risen. He said the rise was "driven in significant part by Extreme Right-Wing Terrorism". Some of these would-be terrorists hoped to attack mosques. Such attacks are named after the attackers' politics, not a religion. Attacks by Muslims are named after their faith, as "Islamic" terrorism.
Studies US news coverage of eleven terrorist events from 2011 to 2016. Her 2011 study had found that the news covered attacks by Muslims "as part of a larger conspiracy of Islam on the U.S.", while "explaining terrorist events committed by non-Muslim U.S. citizens as isolated individual acts of the mentally ill". In this study she found "that the media continue to frame domestic terrorism as isolated incidents of troubled individuals, and 'Islamic' terrorism as a larger problem from Muslims connected to international terror groups". Of the man who attacked a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado in 2015, she notes that coverage turned to his family and history (his ex-wife said he found excuses for his transgressions in his views on Christian teaching), and that a Washington Post headline described him as "adrift and alienated".
"The UK announces new sanctions against extremist Israeli settlers who have violently attacked Palestinians in the West Bank." The sanctions aim "to tackle continued settler violence". "There have been unprecedented levels of violence by extremist settlers in the West Bank over the past year." Two of those named "used physical aggression, threatened families at gunpoint, and destroyed property". The notice does not use the words terrorism or terrorist.
Reports the annual threat update given by Ken McCallum, Director General of MI5, on 13 October 2026. JTAC had "returned the UK terrorism threat level to SEVERE, meaning an attack is highly likely", and "the recent increase was driven in significant part by Extreme Right-Wing Terrorism". He said "extremists of anti-immigration and anti-Muslim grievance are tipping into terrorist intent", with "would-be terrorists aspiring to attack mosques and venues connected to immigration and asylum".
| Attackers | What they are called |
|---|---|
| Muslims | Islamic terrorism, part of a wider threat from Islam |
| Other attackers in the US | Troubled loners, often mentally ill |
| Israeli settlers in the West Bank | Extremist settlers; settler violence |
| The far right in Britain | Extreme right-wing terrorism |
Southport: a rumour, then a riot
On 29 July 2024 three young girls were murdered in Southport. Within hours, a post online called the attacker a "Muslim immigrant". Another gave him a made-up name, Ali-Al-Shakati, and said he had come by boat. That evening the police said he was born in Cardiff. But the rumour spread faster. The next evening a crowd attacked Southport Mosque. In the days that followed, rioters attacked mosques and hotels housing asylum seekers. A House of Commons committee set out these events in 2025. The attacker was not a Muslim, and the name was invented. His real name is Axel Rudakubana. He came from a Christian family: both his parents were reported to be Christians who attend a local church. His father's church called him a valued member, but said the son never took part in church life. At the sentencing, the judge accepted that there was no evidence he acted for any political, religious, racial or ideological cause.
On the disorder after the murders of three girls in Southport on 29 July 2024. Its timeline: "29 July, 13:49: Social media post alleges the suspect is a 'Muslim immigrant'." "29 July, 16:49: First documented social media post alleging the suspect is an asylum seeker named 'Ali-Al-Shakati'." Police said at 19:18 that day "that the suspect was born in Cardiff". "30 July, 19:47: Disorder begins outside Southport Mosque." Misinformation began to circulate "suggesting that the attacker was an asylum seeker named 'Ali-Al-Shakati' (an invented name) who had arrived in the UK by boat in 2023"; "this false rumour that the attacker was an asylum seeker spread rapidly". The disorder that followed included "scenes of rioters trying to break into asylum hotels and attacking mosques, community centres and libraries".
Explains how the belief spread that the suspect "was a Muslim immigrant, which he was not". Posts online were "falsely naming him as 'Ali al-Shakati' with no official source for the name". He was "born to Rwandan parents in Cardiff".
"It has also been reported that his parents are both Christians and attend a local church." The Community Church in Southport said: "over the last few years Alphonse Rudakubana has been a valued part of The Community Church family", and "Alphonse's son and family never attended our Sunday gatherings, nor played any active part in church life."
"The prosecution have made it clear that these offences were not acts of terrorism within the meaning of the terrorism legislation, because there is no evidence that Rudakubana's purpose was to advance a political, religious, racial or ideological cause. I must accept that conclusion." "Axel Rudakubana was born in Cardiff on the 7th August 2006. He is a UK citizen". The remarks also record that his computers held files showing "a long standing preoccupation with violent killing and genocide", including copies of an Al-Qaeda training manual on methods of killing and on making ricin.
29 July, 13:49
Hours after three girls are murdered, a post online calls the attacker a Muslim immigrant.
29 July, 16:49
Another post gives him a made-up name and says he came by boat.
29 July, 19:18
Police say he was born in Cardiff.
30 July, 19:47
Disorder begins outside Southport Mosque.
The facts
The attacker, Axel Rudakubana, was born in Cardiff. He was not a Muslim.
The cost to Muslims
A bad name has a cost. In 2024-25 police in England and Wales, outside London's Metropolitan Police, recorded 7,164 religious hate crimes. It was the highest number on record. 3,199 of them targeted Muslims, a rise of 19% in a year. The Home Office saw a clear spike in August 2024, after the Southport murders and the riots.
"There was a 3% increase in police recorded religious hate crime over the last year, from 6,973 to 7,164 offences, the highest annual total of these offences recorded. There was a 19% rise in religious hate crimes targeted at Muslims (from 2,690 to 3,199 offences)." It shows "a clear spike in these offences in August 2024, which coincides with the Southport murders on the 29 July and the subsequent disorder". These figures exclude the Metropolitan Police Service (London).
- 7,164Recorded, the most ever
- 3,199Against Muslims
- 19%Rise against Muslims in a year
Harsher treatment for the same acts
In 2018 an American Muslim research institute, ISPU, compared like with like. It took attacks and foiled plots in the US from 2002 to 2015. Some attackers were seen as Muslims acting for Islam. Others acted for causes such as white supremacy. Those seen as Muslims got "more than seven times the media coverage" of the others. They also faced harsher charges and "up to three times the prison sentence".
An American Muslim research institute compares like with like: acts of ideologically motivated violence in the United States from 2002 to 2015 that killed two or more people, and violent plots foiled before they happened. It compares perpetrators seen as Muslim and acting in the name of Islam with others, motivated for example by white supremacy. "Perceived Muslim perpetrators of violence are subject to more severe legal charges, up to three times the prison sentence, and more than seven times the media coverage compared to non-Muslim perpetrators."
- Over 7×Media coverage
- Up to 3×Prison sentence
Referred, then let go
Prevent is the UK government's scheme, in England and Wales, for people thought to be at risk of being drawn into terrorism. A referral leads to no criminal record or any other penalty. In 2015-16, the first year of figures, 7,631 people were referred. 4,997 of them, or 65%, were referred over Islamist concerns. Only 264 of those 4,997, about 5%, went on to receive support. About 95% did not. By 2024-25 the picture had turned around. Of 8,778 referrals, 21% were over far-right concerns and 10% over Islamist ones. Of the cases taken on where the concern was recorded, 42% were far-right and 15% Islamist.
"In 2015/16, a total of 7,631 individuals were subject to a referral due to concerns that they were vulnerable to being drawn into terrorism." Of them, "4,997 (65%) were referred for concerns related to Islamist extremism and 759 (10%) were referred for concerns related to right wing extremism". 381 people received Channel support, of whom 264 had been referred over Islamist extremism. Referrals "are confidential and do not result in a criminal record or any other form of sanction". "Participation in the Channel programme is voluntary and confidential."
8,778 referrals were made to Prevent in the year ending 31 March 2025. "'Extreme Right-Wing' concerns accounted for 21% (1,798) of referrals, higher than those related to 'Islamist Extremism' (10%; 870)." Of the referrals adopted as a Channel case, 612 of 1,464 with a type of concern specified (42%) were for Extreme Right-Wing concerns, "while 226 (15%) were for concerns related to 'Islamist Extremism'".
- 4,997Referred
- 264Went on to receive support
- About 95%Did not
What the public has come to believe
The authors of the US study give a warning. They say the gap in coverage may explain why people fear the "Muslim terrorist". It may also explain why they ignore other threats. In 2016 YouGov asked the same 4,812 British adults two questions. 33% said terrorism by Muslims tells us something significant about Islam. Only 20% said terrorism by Catholics or Protestants tells us something significant about Christianity. Islam asks for the same fairness: blame the person, not the faith. Knowing Muslims changes this. In a 2007 Pew survey in the US, 56% of those who knew a Muslim had a favourable view of Muslims. Of those who did not know one, only 32% did.
Studies news coverage (LexisNexis Academic and CNN.com) of all terrorist attacks in the United States from 2006 to 2015, 136 attacks. "Controlling for target type, fatalities, and being arrested, attacks by Muslim perpetrators received, on average, 357% more coverage than other attacks." The authors call the perpetrator's religion the largest predictor of coverage, and say the disparities "may explain why members of the public tend to fear the 'Muslim terrorist' while ignoring other threats". In the paper's data, "Muslims perpetrated 12.5% of the attacks yet received 50.4% of the news coverage", and "the individual person(s) responsible for the attacks is unknown 40.4% of the time"; the rest were by known attackers who were not Muslim (the paper's three categories: "Perpetrator Known & Muslim; Perpetrator Known & Not Muslim; and Perpetrator Unknown"). The University of Alabama's report on the study adds: "Muslims committed on average 12.5 percent of the attacks yet received more than half of the news coverage."
Two questions put to the same 4,812 adults in Great Britain on 22 December 2016. "Do you think terrorist acts that are carried out by Muslims do or do not tell us anything about the nature of Islam?" 33% said they "do tell us something significant about Islam", 50% that they do not, 17% did not know. "Do you think terrorist acts that are carried out by Catholics or Protestants do or do not tell us anything about the nature of Christianity?" 20% said they "do tell us something significant about Christianity", 60% that they do not, 20% did not know.
A US survey. "Among those who know a Muslim, for instance, a majority (56%) has a favorable overall impression of Muslims, compared with just 32% of those who are not acquainted with a Muslim."
Terrorism: forbidden in Islam
The Qur'an says that killing one innocent person is "as if he slew the whole people". The Prophet (ﷺ) forbade killing women and children, even in war. He disowned anyone who attacks his community and strikes down the good and the wicked alike. Groups like ISIS break these rules each time they attack a crowd. Their attacks are crimes against Islam, not obedience to it.
“On that account: We ordained for the Children of Israel that if any one slew a person - unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land - it would be as if he slew the whole people: and if any one saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole people. Then although there came to them Our messengers with clear signs, yet, even after that, many of them continued to commit excesses in the land.”
Ibn Umar reports that a woman was found killed during one of the Prophet's (ﷺ) campaigns, and the Prophet forbade the killing of women and children.
Abu Hurayra reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: whoever attacks his community, striking down the good and the wicked alike, sparing not even the believers, and not keeping faith with those given a pledge of security, has nothing to do with me, and I have nothing to do with him.
Forced marriage: Islam requires consent
The Prophet (ﷺ) said a woman must not be married without her consent. A father once married off his daughter, who had been married before, against her wishes. The Prophet (ﷺ) declared the marriage invalid. So forcing a woman into marriage goes against his command. The UK government's Forced Marriage Unit says it "is not a problem specific to one country, religion or culture". It says "no major faith in the UK advocates forced marriage". It names free consent as needed in Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim and Sikh marriages alike. A family that forces a marriage goes against its own religion.
Abu Huraira reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said a woman who has been married before is not to be married again without being consulted, and a virgin is not to be married without her permission.
Khansa bint Khidam, who had been married before, reports that her father married her off against her wishes, so she went to the Prophet (ﷺ), and he declared the marriage invalid.
"A forced marriage is one in which a person uses violence, threats or another form of coercion to cause someone else to enter into a marriage". "Forced marriage is not a problem specific to one country, religion or culture." "The FMU does not record data on religion; no major faith in the UK advocates forced marriage. Freely given consent is a prerequisite of Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim and Sikh marriages."
How does marriage work in Islam, and are men and women equal?
FGM: a custom older than Islam
Female genital mutilation, or FGM, means cutting a girl's private parts for no medical reason. Ten UN bodies say it is found among Christians, Jews and Muslims. They say no holy book of these faiths calls for it. And it is older than both Christianity and Islam. No verse of the Qur'an mentions it. In 2016 Egypt's official body for religious rulings said FGM is forbidden in Islam. It called FGM a custom, not a part of religion. UNICEF says that in many countries FGM is most common among Muslims. But it is also found among Christians, and the pattern changes from country to country. In Togo, 21% of Muslim women and girls have been cut, against 1% of Christians. In Niger it is the other way round: 55% of Christians, against 2% of Muslims.
Estimates that 100 to 140 million girls and women have undergone female genital mutilation, most often in western, eastern and north-eastern Africa, some countries of Asia and the Middle East, and certain immigrant communities in North America and Europe. Defines it as all procedures involving partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs, for non-medical reasons, in four types from removal of the clitoris or its hood to infibulation. It says the practice has no known health benefits and is known to be harmful. It says that although the practice is found among Christians, Jews and Muslims, none of the holy texts of these religions prescribes it, and that it pre-dates both Christianity and Islam.
Reports that Egypt's Dar al-Ifta, the state's official body for religious rulings, said female genital mutilation is a cultural practice, not a religious one, and that it is religiously prohibited as well as illegal.
"In many countries, FGM/C prevalence is highest among Muslim girls and women. The practice, however, is also found among Catholic and other Christian communities." "Clearly, variations in prevalence among people of different faiths demonstrate that FGM/C is a challenge for all religious groups in affected countries." Its summary of figures: in Togo, "21% of Muslim girls and women have undergone FGM/C, compared to 1% of Christian girls and women"; in Niger, "55% of Christian girls and women have undergone FGM/C, compared to 2% of Muslim girls and women".
Grooming gangs: crimes Islam forbids at every step
The crimes were real, and official inquiries set them out. In Rotherham alone, about 1,400 children were sexually exploited from 1997 to 2013. In 2025 a national audit looked at three police areas. It found more men of Asian heritage among suspects than their share of the people there. But these men broke Islam's law at every step. The Qur'an forbids drink and all sex outside marriage. It forbids forcing even a slave woman to sell her body. The Prophet (ﷺ) said that whoever is not merciful to others will not be shown mercy. A Muslim prosecutor, Nazir Afzal, brought the Rochdale gang to court. Child sexual abuse happens in every community. In police records for 2023, where the offender's ethnicity was known, 88% were White and 5% Asian. But it was known for only 31% of offenders. So the national audit warns that no firm conclusion about ethnic groups can be drawn from these figures.
The independent inquiry into child sexual exploitation in Rotherham. It found that, by a conservative estimate, about 1,400 children were sexually exploited in the town between 1997 and 2013. In just over a third of cases the children were already known to services, and council and police leaders repeatedly failed them. It also found that some staff were nervous of identifying the ethnic origins of perpetrators for fear of being thought racist.
The national audit of group-based child sexual exploitation and abuse. It found that in the national data the ethnicity of perpetrators was still not recorded for two-thirds of them. Local police data from Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire showed disproportionate numbers of men from Asian ethnic backgrounds among suspects, and the audit said that men of Asian and Pakistani ethnicity appeared to be disproportionately represented in some areas.
“O ye who believe! Intoxicants and gambling, (dedication of) stones, and (divination by) arrows, are an abomination,- of Satan's handwork: eschew such (abomination), that ye may prosper.”
“Nor come nigh to adultery: for it is a shameful (deed) and an evil, opening the road (to other evils).”
“But force not your maids to prostitution when they desire chastity, in order that ye may make a gain in the goods of this life. But if anyone compels them, yet, after such compulsion, is Allah, Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful (to them),”
Abu Huraira reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) kissed his grandson al-Hasan ibn Ali while al-Aqra ibn Habis was sitting with him. Al-Aqra said he had ten children and had never kissed any of them. The Prophet looked at him and said that whoever is not merciful to others will not be shown mercy.
The memoir of the former Chief Crown Prosecutor for North West England, appointed in 2011. He describes reversing the earlier decision not to prosecute the Rochdale grooming case, which led to the conviction of nine men in 2012.
"The VKPP Report for 2023 notes that ethnicity was recorded for only 31% of perpetrators, but goes on to record the ethnicity breakdown (88% 'White', 5% as 'Asian', 3% as 'Black', 2% as 'Mixed' and 1% as 'Chinese or other')". The VKPP report covers all recorded child sexual abuse and exploitation in England and Wales. "With over two thirds of ethnicity data missing for perpetrators in the VKPP report and nearly two thirds missing in COCAD, it is not possible to draw any conclusions on the representation of ethnic groups amongst perpetrators from this published data set."
Two inquiries, one fair test
Professor Alexis Jay led the Rotherham inquiry. She also chaired the national inquiry into child sexual abuse in England and Wales. In 2020 it reported on the Catholic Church. From 1970 to 2015 the Church received more than 900 complaints, involving over 3,000 instances of abuse. The inquiry blamed those who abused children, and those who "turned a blind eye". It said they had betrayed the Church's moral purpose. No fair reader takes those crimes as the teaching of Christianity. Muslims ask for the same fairness. Baroness Casey warned that blurring the facts lets some people "sow and spread hatred". She said Asian, Pakistani and Muslim communities "needlessly suffer" from it.
The independent inquiry into child sexual exploitation in Rotherham. It found that, by a conservative estimate, about 1,400 children were sexually exploited in the town between 1997 and 2013. In just over a third of cases the children were already known to services, and council and police leaders repeatedly failed them. It also found that some staff were nervous of identifying the ethnic origins of perpetrators for fear of being thought racist.
"Between 1970 and 2015, the Roman Catholic Church received more than 900 complaints involving over 3,000 instances of child sexual abuse against more than 900 individuals connected to the Church, including priests, monks and volunteers." "That moral purpose was betrayed over decades by those in the Church who perpetrated this abuse and those who turned a blind eye to it."
On the failure to record and state the ethnicity of offenders plainly: "This does no one any favours at all, and least of all those in the Asian, Pakistani or Muslim communities who needlessly suffer as those with malicious intent use this obfuscation to sow and spread hatred."
| Inquiry | What it found | Who it blamed |
|---|---|---|
| Rotherham (2014) | About 1,400 children exploited, 1997 to 2013 | The abusers, and the leaders who failed the children |
| Catholic Church (2020) | Over 3,000 instances of abuse, 1970 to 2015 | The abusers, and those who turned a blind eye |
Apostasy: a law against treason, for a court alone
Islamic law did have a penalty for apostasy, meaning leaving the faith. It comes from the words of the Prophet (ﷺ), not from the Qur'an. Those words point to treason. One hadith speaks of the one who leaves his religion, "leaving the community". Another names the man "who goes forth to fight with Allah and His Apostle". The Hanafi school, one of the main schools of Islamic law, gives the reason. The penalty in this world exists only to ward off waging war. Only a Muslim state's court could apply it, never a relative or a private person. The Qur'an itself says: "Let there be no compulsion in religion". Today most Muslim-majority countries have no law against apostasy. In 2019 Pew Research Center counted 22 countries with such laws, out of 198 it studied. About 50 countries have a Muslim majority.
Abdullah ibn Masud reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said the blood of a Muslim who bears witness that there is no god but Allah and that he is His Messenger may be shed in only three cases: a life for a life, a married person who commits adultery, and the one who goes out of the religion, leaving the community (al-mariq min al-din al-tarik lil-jamaʿa).
Aisha reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said the blood of a Muslim may lawfully be shed for only one of three reasons: a married man who commits adultery; one who goes forth to fight with Allah and His Apostle; or one who commits murder. Abu Dawud places this hadith in the chapter "Ruling on one who apostatizes".
The standard Hanafi law manual explains why a woman who leaves Islam is not put to death. The rule is that punishments for unbelief wait for the Hereafter, since bringing them forward would spoil the meaning of this life as a test. The worldly penalty departs from that rule only to ward off an immediate harm, which is waging war (al-hirab). That is not expected from women, so a woman who leaves Islam is held, not killed.
Ibn Qudamah, a Hanbali jurist, holds that, as a rule, no one may carry out a fixed penalty (hadd) except the ruler (imam) or the one he appoints to act for him. The only exception he allows is an old ruling on a master and his own slave, which has no application today.
“Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things.”
In 2019, 79 of 198 countries and territories (40%) had laws or policies against blasphemy, including some in Europe, and 22 had laws against apostasy.
"Of the 232 countries and territories included in this study, 50 are Muslim-majority."
- 22Countries with such laws, of 198 studied
- About 50Muslim-majority countries
Apostasy laws: were people punished for converting to Islam?
Aisha's marriage: judged by its own time
By Aisha's own account, her marriage contract was made at six, and she moved into the Prophet's (ﷺ) home at nine. In her world, a girl was held ready for marriage at puberty. Other traditions set their ages low too. English law let a girl be betrothed or given in marriage at seven. It let a girl of twelve marry until 1929. Rashi, an 11th-century Jewish Bible commentator, says Rebecca was three when Isaac married her. The Prophet's (ﷺ) enemies called him a forger, a poet and a madman. None of them is recorded objecting to this marriage. Years later, given the choice to leave, Aisha chose to stay. She became one of the leading scholars of early Islam. Today each country's law sets the age of marriage, and Muslims keep the law where they live (17:34).
Aisha reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) married her when she was six, that the marriage was consummated when she was nine, and that she then lived with him for nine years.
Sets out English law: a girl may be betrothed or given in marriage at seven, is entitled to dower at nine, and at twelve may consent to or refuse a marriage. A marriage made under that age was not void but incomplete, to be confirmed or refused when she reached it.
Made void any marriage in which either party is under sixteen. Before it, English law allowed a girl to marry at twelve and a boy at fourteen.
Following the rabbinic chronology of Seder Olam, Rashi says that Rebecca was born at the time of the binding of Isaac, and that Isaac waited until she was fit for marriage, at three years old, and then married her.
“"Nay," they say, "(these are) medleys of dream! - Nay, He forged it! - Nay, He is (but) a poet! Let him then bring us a Sign like the ones that were sent to (Prophets) of old!"”
“And the Unbelievers would almost trip thee up with their eyes when they hear the Message; and they say: "Surely he is possessed!"”
A history of how Muslims and non-Muslims have written the Prophet's (ﷺ) life. It shows that pre-modern Christian critics attacked his marriages chiefly for their number, and that Aisha's age became a central charge only in the twentieth century.
When Allah told the Prophet (ﷺ) to give his wives the choice of leaving him, he began with Aisha and told her not to answer until she had consulted her parents. She replied that she had no need to consult them: she chose Allah, His Messenger and the Home of the Hereafter.
Credits Aisha with 2,210 hadith, 174 of them in both al-Bukhari and Muslim, says he knows of no woman in the community, or among women at all, more learned than she, and gives her age at death as sixty-three and some months.
“Come not nigh to the orphan's property except to improve it, until he attains the age of full strength; and fulfil (every) engagement, for (every) engagement will be enquired into (on the Day of Reckoning).”
A backward religion? Its first command was to read
The first verses revealed to the Prophet (ﷺ) open with the command to read or recite. They speak of God (﷾) teaching man by the pen. The Qur'an teaches believers to pray: "O my Lord! advance me in knowledge." Muslim scholars took this up. In the eleventh century, Ibn al-Haytham tested old ideas about light and sight by experiment. In Baghdad, al-Khwarizmi wrote a book on algebra, with a preface that shows his Muslim faith. Guinness World Records names a place of learning in Fez, Morocco, founded in 859, as the oldest still running. Europe's oldest university, Bologna, was founded in 1088. Today women make up 41% of researchers in the Arab States and 50% in Central Asia. In Western Europe the figure is 34%, and worldwide 32%.
“Proclaim! (or read!) in the name of thy Lord and Cherisher, Who created- Created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood: Proclaim! And thy Lord is Most Bountiful,- He Who taught (the use of) the pen,- Taught man that which he knew not.”
Aisha describes the first revelation. In the cave of Hira the angel told the Prophet (ﷺ) to read, and three times he answered that he could not read, before the first verses of Surat al-Alaq were given to him. Khadija took him to her cousin Waraqa ibn Nawfal, an old, blind man who had become a Christian and wrote out parts of the Gospel in Hebrew letters. Waraqa said this was the angel God had sent to Moses, and a few days later he died.
“High above all is Allah, the King, the Truth! Be not in haste with the Qur'an before its revelation to thee is completed, but say, "O my Lord! advance me in knowledge."”
English translation and study of Books I-III of Ibn al-Haytham's Book of Optics (Kitab al-Manazir, early eleventh century). It shows him testing theories of light and vision by controlled observation and experiment.
Al-Khwarizmi lived from about 780 to about 850 and was a scholar at the House of Wisdom in Baghdad under the Caliph al-Ma'mun. His book on arithmetic survives only in a Latin version, known as "Al-Khwarizmi on the Hindu Art of Reckoning", which sets out the Hindu place-value system of numbers. The pious preface to his Algebra shows that he was an orthodox Muslim.
"The oldest existing and continually operating educational institution in the world is the University of Karueein, founded in 859 AD in Fez, Morocco. The University of Bologna, Italy, was founded in 1088 and is the oldest one in Europe."
The share of women among researchers, by region, using data for 2021 or the latest year available: "49.6% for Central Asia", "44.4% for Latin America and the Caribbean", "41.1% for Arab States", "38.7% for Central and Eastern Europe", "33.9% in Western Europe", "31.7% for World", "31.5% for Sub-Saharan Africa", "26.8% for East Asia and the Pacific", "25.9% in South and West Asia". There is no figure for North America, whose countries do not report comparable data.
Forced conversion: no compulsion in religion
The Qur'an says: "Let there be no compulsion in religion". It even asks the Prophet (ﷺ) whether he would compel mankind to believe against their will. There were conquests, but a conquest is not a conversion. Indonesia has more Muslims than any other country. No foreign Muslim army conquered it. Islam reached it through traders and local rulers.
“Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things.”
“If it had been thy Lord's will, they would all have believed,- all who are on earth! wilt thou then compel mankind, against their will, to believe!”
Traces the coming of Islam to the Indonesian islands from about the thirteenth century through trade and the conversion of local rulers and peoples, not through conquest by a foreign Muslim army.
Women: rights written into the law
The Qur'an gives women a fixed share of inheritance. It says that women have what they earn. The Prophet (ﷺ) required that a woman be asked before she is married. In England, most of what a married woman owned passed to her husband until 1882. That year a law let her own property in her own right.
“From what is left by parents and those nearest related there is a share for men and a share for women, whether the property be small or large,-a determinate share.”
“And in no wise covet those things in which Allah Hath bestowed His gifts More freely on some of you than on others: To men is allotted what they earn, and to women what they earn: But ask Allah of His bounty. For Allah hath full knowledge of all things.”
Abu Huraira reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said a woman who has been married before is not to be married again without being consulted, and a virgin is not to be married without her permission.
Allowed a married woman in England to own and control property in her own right, as if she were unmarried. Before it, most of what a wife owned passed to her husband; an 1870 Act had let her keep only her own earnings and a few other kinds of property.
Sharia: Muslims keep the law where they live
Critics say Muslims want to force the Sharia, Islamic law, on others. The Qur'an tells believers to fulfil their obligations. So a Muslim must keep the law of the country he lives in (17:34). No private Muslim may carry out Islam's criminal penalties, in any country. They belong only to the ruler of a Muslim state, or one he appoints.
“O ye who believe! fulfil (all) obligations.”
“Come not nigh to the orphan's property except to improve it, until he attains the age of full strength; and fulfil (every) engagement, for (every) engagement will be enquired into (on the Day of Reckoning).”
Ibn Qudamah, a Hanbali jurist, holds that, as a rule, no one may carry out a fixed penalty (hadd) except the ruler (imam) or the one he appoints to act for him. The only exception he allows is an old ruling on a master and his own slave, which has no application today.
Must Muslims obey the law where they live? Do they want to force Sharia on others?
Lying for Islam: a sin, not a teaching
Some critics claim Islam lets Muslims lie to spread their faith. It does not. The Prophet (ﷺ) said lying leads to wickedness, and wickedness to the Fire. Critics point to taqiyya. It rests on a verse that excuses a believer who says words of disbelief under compulsion, his heart still firm in faith. It is no licence to deceive anyone.
Abdullah ibn Mas'ud reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said truthfulness leads to righteousness and righteousness to Paradise, and a man keeps telling the truth until he becomes truthful. Lying leads to wickedness and wickedness to the Fire, and a man keeps lying until he is recorded with Allah as a liar.
“Any one who, after accepting faith in Allah, utters Unbelief,- except under compulsion, his heart remaining firm in Faith - but such as open their breast to Unbelief, on them is Wrath from Allah, and theirs will be a dreadful Penalty.”
The fair test
Every faith has followers who do wrong. If a religion were judged by its worst people, none would pass. The fair test is what its sources teach. The Qur'an sets the standard Muslims ask of others. It says: "let not the hatred of others to you make you swerve to wrong and depart from justice". It also says that "no bearer of burdens can bear the burden of another". Each person answers for his own deeds. So judge Islam by its teaching, and judge each person by what he does.
“O ye who believe! stand out firmly for Allah, as witnesses to fair dealing, and let not the hatred of others to you make you swerve to wrong and depart from justice. Be just: that is next to piety: and fear Allah. For Allah is well-acquainted with all that ye do.”
“Say: "Shall I seek for (my) Cherisher other than Allah, when He is the Cherisher of all things (that exist)? Every soul draws the meed of its acts on none but itself: no bearer of burdens can bear the burden of another. Your goal in the end is towards Allah: He will tell you the truth of the things wherein ye disputed."”
Perspectives
What critics say
Critics say Islam's bad name is earned. They say its followers commit much of today's terrorism and other crimes. And they say those crimes come from its texts.
Critics say Muslims commit a large share of terrorism today, so the coverage is fair.
Rebuttal
The US study allowed for the number killed, the target and arrests. Attacks by Muslims still got 357% more coverage. Most Muslims reject violence against civilians. A US government report found that most victims of terrorism were Muslims. And many attackers knew little of Islam, or had criminal pasts.
Critics say the grooming gangs show something in Islam itself.
Rebuttal
Every step those men took is forbidden in Islam: drink, drugs, sex outside marriage, forced prostitution and cruelty to children. The same inquiry chair reported thousands of instances of abuse in the Catholic Church. The inquiry blamed the abusers and those who covered up, not Christianity. Islam asks for the same test.
Critics say people who do these things are following the Qur'an and the hadith.
Rebuttal
The Qur'an and hadith forbid each of these acts. They forbid killing the innocent, forcing a woman to marry and forcing anyone to convert. Islamic State's own forms show that most of its recruits had only basic knowledge of Islamic law.
The Islamic perspective
Islam forbids terrorism, forced marriage, grooming and forced conversion, and no verse calls for FGM. Those who do such things break its law. A faith should be judged by its teaching, and each person by his own deeds.
The Qur'an says killing one innocent person is like killing all mankind.
The Prophet (ﷺ) required a woman's consent to marriage and annulled a marriage forced on a woman.
In the US from 2006 to 2015, attacks by Muslims got 357% more coverage on average.
An MI5 study found many people involved in terrorism in Britain lacked religious literacy.
Most Muslims surveyed in 39 countries reject suicide bombing and other violence against civilians.
The Qur'an says no bearer of burdens can bear the burden of another.