Protecting Our Mosques: What Tell MAMA’s Reports Reveal About Anti-Muslim Attacks
Mosques are not simply buildings. They are places of worship, education, pastoral support and community life. When a mosque is threatened, vandalised or attacked, the harm extends far beyond damage to property. It sends a message to every worshipper—particularly children, older people and Muslim women—that they may not be safe while practising their faith.
A review of Tell MAMA’s complete academic reports archive demonstrates that attacks on mosques are not isolated incidents. They form part of a recurring pattern in which anti-Muslim hate intensifies following terrorist attacks, political flashpoints, inflammatory public debate, far-right mobilisation and the spread of misinformation online.
The archive includes early research into the far right, annual reports covering street-based and online hate, studies of gendered anti-Muslim hostility, analysis of trigger events such as the Westminster and Christchurch terrorist attacks, and more recent investigations into foreign influence and online networks. Not every report focuses exclusively on mosques, but collectively they show how anti-Muslim rhetoric, threats against individuals and the targeting of Islamic institutions reinforce one another.
From graffiti to attempted arson
Tell MAMA’s early reports identified a clear relationship between trigger events and attacks on Muslim institutions. Following the murder of Lee Rigby in May 2013, three petrol bombs were thrown at a mosque in Grimsby while people were meeting inside. Mosques in Braintree and Gillingham were also attacked, a petrol bomb was thrown at a mosque in Milton Keynes and bacon was left outside a mosque in Cardiff. Tell MAMA documented these incidents as part of a wider wave of retaliatory hostility.
The 2013–14 report, Anti-Muslim Overview, Analysis and Cumulative Extremism, recorded 34 attacks on mosques during the three months following Lee Rigby’s murder. These included nine cases of arson and seven incidents involving break-ins or violence against worshippers. Tell MAMA also identified Pavlo Lapshyn’s attempted bombings of mosques and Ian Forman’s plot to attack two mosques in Merseyside.
The following 2014–15 findings recorded 15 incidents involving damage to Islamic institutions or personal property. The wider pattern was already becoming clear: international terrorism, political violence and heavily racialised media or online narratives could create an environment in which some people felt justified in targeting ordinary Muslims and their places of worship.
The 2016 annual report, A Constructed Threat, included the targeting of Jamia Mosque in Bristol. A group shouted racist abuse, attached a St George’s flag to the mosque fence and threw bacon sandwiches at the building, leaving bacon on the door handles. CCTV and information discovered on social media helped link individuals to the attack. Two men received prison sentences, two women received suspended sentences and the group was prohibited from approaching any mosque in England and Wales for ten years.
This example illustrates why functioning CCTV, evidence preservation and rapid reporting matter. They can turn an incident that frightens an entire congregation into evidence capable of supporting arrests, prosecution and protective court orders.
The 2017 annual report recorded a 56 per cent increase in anti-Muslim vandalism compared with 2016. It also described a fake bomb being left outside Paisley Central Mosque after the London Bridge attack and documented online calls to burn mosques or drive vehicles into them. The report demonstrated that online incitement and attacks against physical institutions cannot be treated as entirely separate problems.
Christchurch and the copycat risk
Tell MAMA’s report on the impact of the Christchurch terrorist attack provides perhaps the clearest evidence of the risks created by major trigger events. Following the murder of 51 Muslim worshippers in New Zealand in March 2019, reports of anti-Muslim hate to Tell MAMA increased by 692 per cent in one week. Incidents targeting mosques and Islamic institutions increased by 433 per cent between February and March—from three reports to 16.
The case of neo-Nazi Sam Imrie demonstrated the copycat threat. Imrie threatened to burn down Fife Islamic Centre, filmed its exterior and discussed livestreaming an arson attack in imitation of Christchurch. He was subsequently convicted of terrorism and other offences.
Tell MAMA’s A Decade of Anti-Muslim Hate brought these patterns together. Across 2012–22, it found that far-right agitation, terrorist attacks, political discourse, the Brexit referendum, grooming scandals and targeted campaigns repeatedly produced spikes in anti-Muslim hate. It also showed how dehumanising language can make Muslims appear to be a threatening collective rather than individual citizens entitled to safety and dignity.
The threat has continued to evolve. Tell MAMA’s 2025 research found that the period following the Southport murders produced unprecedented levels of online and street-based hostility. James Aspin was imprisoned after using TikTok to threaten to burn down every mosque in Newcastle. Blake Hindry received a prison sentence after making anonymous calls threatening to burn mosques and murder worshippers in London and Kent.
Tell MAMA’s investigation into foreign influence on the UK far right identified a further development. The “Direct Action” network used Telegram and other platforms to encourage mosque vandalism, offer cryptocurrency payments and circulate terrorist manuals and bomb-making material. Between June and October 2025, Tell MAMA received 30 reports of attacks, vandalism or threatening behaviour directed at mosques and Islamic centres.
What Tell MAMA can do
Tell MAMA cannot replace the police, emergency services, counterterrorism specialists or qualified security assessors. Its reasonable and valuable role is to connect reporting, research, victim support and practical preparedness.
First, Tell MAMA can use its data to provide verified safety bulletins during identifiable spikes. These should alert mosques to patterns without spreading rumours or generating unnecessary fear.
Second, it can encourage every mosque to appoint a safety lead and deputy. Its mosque security section and 2026 safety guidance can support regular checks of CCTV, lighting, doors, gates, emergency exits and procedures for unwanted visitors.
Third, Tell MAMA can provide introductory training on recognising anti-Muslim hate, preserving threatening mail, retaining CCTV footage, saving online evidence and recording descriptions, vehicles and witnesses. Specialist evacuation, lockdown and counterterrorism planning should remain with police and appropriately qualified professionals.
Fourth, Tell MAMA can help mosques document incidents for police investigations and protective-security funding applications. Even apparently minor graffiti, threatening calls or hostile visits should be recorded because several reports may reveal repeat targeting or a wider geographical pattern.
Finally, Tell MAMA can provide casework, advocacy, counselling and reassurance after an incident. Mosque staff, trustees or witnesses can report confidentially to Tell MAMA; where there is an immediate danger, they must always call 999 first.
The central lesson from more than a decade of research is straightforward: reporting is part of prevention. By combining evidence, timely safety advice and trauma-informed support, Tell MAMA can help mosques remain safe, open and confident places of worship.