TEHRAN - According to the Pew Research Center, Islam is the fastest growing religion in Europe. The Muslim population in Europe (excluding Turkey) was about 30 million in 1990 and 44 million in 2010. 

By 2023, that number has exceeded 50.3 million, which makes Islam the second largest religion in Europe. The figure pales in comparison with the third and fourth largest religions in Europe, which number between one and two million. 

It is expected that by 2050 Islam will be the largest global religion across the four corners of the planet. 

The rise of Muslims in the West, particularly in Europe, can be divided into two main reasons. 

The first is the record rise of Europeans converting to Islam. 

There are influential factors at play here. 

Firstly, Europeans, in particular the younger generation, have studied and established Islam to be a religion of peace that promotes equal rights for everyone and does not differentiate between race, gender, wealth and so on. 

The Articles of the European Convention on Human Rights, with which legal cases are taken to, as a final resort, to the European Supreme Court to rule on, are the same rights already enshrined in Islam nearly 1,400 years ago by the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) and the holy Muslim book, the Quran, of which all its words, were revealed to the Prophet by Allah. 

Among the many popular European converts to Islam is the sister-in-law of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Lauren Booth famously announced her conversion during Blair's premiership after visiting the shrine of Fatima al-Masumeh in the Iranian city of Qom. 

"It was a Tuesday evening and I sat down and felt this shot of spiritual morphine, just absolute bliss and joy," Booth said. 

The second factor that has given rise to Islam in Europe is the West's invasions, attacks, and occupation of Muslim nations in West Asia for more than two decades now. 

The death and disaster that came with the merciless attacks, led by the U.S., triggered a refugee crisis in Europe. 

Muslims have taken dangerous routes, through rough seas, on flimsy boats, risking the lives of their loved ones to land on European shores and escape warzones. Many drowned and perished. 

Muslims are known to be respectful of their faith, something the far-rightists have tapped into in order to raise their popularity during times of economic hardship.

In essence, the far-rightists have pinned the blame for the financial plight of European households on refugees, many of whom are Muslims from war-torn countries, and promoted this misleading theory to the public, instead of blaming policies to wage wars or stand up in opposition against the U.S.-led wars.

For fear of losing votes, Western governments have turned more toward far-right approaches despite their publicly slated slogans of liberalism or left-wing politics. 

Instead of condemning the actions of far-right radical groups, many so-called leftist parties have themselves grown more radical, distancing themselves from the fundamental principles with which their parties were founded. 

To attract voters and cling to power, these political parties have either supported Islamophobic acts in Europe, stopped short of denouncing them or taken anti-Islam measures or legislations. 

In other cases, some nations have voted for far-rightists with an Islamophobic viewpoint. 

Experts say more countries in Europe are turning a blind eye to hate crimes against Muslims by legalizing blasphemous actions against Muslims while passing laws that ban or limit their religious practices.

Again, this viewpoint is linked to the economic hardship of ordinary households as their governments mostly spend taxpayers' money on wars in West Asia and Africa. 

The policy of the demonization of Muslims rather than wars has worked, especially as the far-rightists and extremists are flourishing in Europe. 

Muslims in Europe complain they have become second class, inferior citizens and powerless in comparison to those holding other beliefs. 

This is dangerous because history has witnessed how such groups are later persecuted in large numbers because of the hatred toward them in society based on bogus accusations by extremists. 

The level of demonization against Muslims in Europe is concerning. The policy of hate has become the norm, and without this far-right groups and their non-European sponsors cannot advance their sinister agenda. 

In March this year, a professor at the Istanbul-based Turkish-German University, Enes Bayrakli, told Anadolu “each year, we see a new country come up with a new plan, with a new law, or a party in Europe to ban something, a religious practice of Muslims. This can be minaret ban, mosque ban, hijab ban, or burka ban. … These kinds of regulations are being materialized each year, and it is becoming more and more normal in Europe.”

According to the Bridge Initiative, a multi-year research project on Islamophobia housed in Georgetown University, France’s systematic crackdown on French Muslim society resulted in “as many as 24,887 Muslim organizations and businesses placed on a secret blacklist and under strict monitoring, and 718 Muslim-owned organizations and businesses including at least 4 schools, 37 mosques, 210 businesses, and two organizations closed."

France and Austria maintained their efforts to criminalize politically active Muslims as well as Islamic organizations and institutions in 2022. 

In the United Kingdom, incidents of anti-Muslim racism continued at all levels of society, and there were renewed calls for the ruling Conservative government to tackle Islamophobia within its own party ranks once again. 

These are just some of the cases documented, in a long list of measures taken against Muslims in Europe. NGOs and activists have been warning of rising anti-Muslim hatred and islamophobia across EU states. 

Research has also shed light on the rising anti-Muslim hate crimes throughout the European continent, at a time when Muslims are feeling more restricted in practicing their faith. 

The latest blasphemous acts toward the Quran, a book that Muslims hold so dear to their hearts, come at a time when there is again financial hardship in Europe. 

The outrage among Muslims is not limited to the act of burning the Quran itself, but the support and outrageous hypocrisy of European governments in supporting the act. 

The sacrilegious acts have diverted attention from the rising inflation records. 

According to intelligence agencies, political groups and organizations in West Asia, the United States and Israel are behind the extremists, who conducted the latest act of sacrilege against Muslims. 

The bigger picture in Europe is bleaker. Experts say the hatred towards Muslims is being driven by the U.S. and Israel in a bid to see a conflict against Muslims. 

Muslim NGOs and leaders, however, have proven to be wiser than the orchestrators of such plots. For example, a boycott of Swedish goods and other peaceful steps will bury the hate campaign against Muslims.