Foreign-Funded, Hard Left ‘Hope Not Hate’ Releases ‘Counter Jihad’ Report Slamming Muslim Moderates

The foreign-funded, hard-Left group ‘Hope Not Hate’ – which has previously prided itself on its influence on the UK General Election – has today published a 130-page “exclusive” report detailing what it claims are the “Anti-Muslim” connections in the United Kingdom and United States.

The report – which targets anti-Islamist activists from the Muslim community and beyond – has been slammed by Muslim moderates as “hate filled” and “totally discredited”.

“The Counter-Jihad Movement: Anti-Muslim hatred from the margins to the mainstream” was trailed uncritically in the Guardian newspaper, and was finally released on Wednesday after several days of delay.

But readers were shocked to see that rather than being the usual Hope Not Hate report into the English Defence League (EDL), or American anti-Islamist activists, the authors, Nick Lowles and Joe Mulhall included Muslim reformers who oppose Shariah and fundamentalism.

The original report – now seemingly edited – includes a reference to the minority rights advocate and anti-Shariah campaigner Raquel Saraswati.

Mr. Saraswati, who wears a hijab, and considers herself a devout, practicing, reformist Muslim, was targeted due to her links to anti-Shariah campaigners. Her inclusion in the report drew ire from other reformist Muslims, including Maajid Nawaz of the Quilliam Foundation, who took to Twitter to air his disgust:

I’m disgusted @HopeNotHate listed a hijabi-Muslim woman @RaquelEvita & Muslims @DrZuhdiJasser & Tawfik Hamid in their “anti-Muslim” report

— maajid nawaz (@MaajidNawaz) December 9, 2015

Muslim Koran scholar & a hijab-Muslim woman made extremism targets by @hopenothate‘s hate-filled report https://t.co/1nqN80RMPW

— maajid nawaz (@MaajidNawaz) December 9, 2015

 The report also targeted Quranic scholars such as Tawfik Hamed, a former extremist turned reformer:

One of the guys @hopenothate witch-hunted & libelled as “anti-Muslim” is reform-Muslim Koran scholar Tawfik Hamid https://t.co/62mGcbFN6t

— maajid nawaz (@MaajidNawaz) December 9, 2015

The fact that the Islamophobia industry is now targeting former extremists and Muslim reformers may be a sign that the groups who peddle the myths around the “Counter Jihad” movement are running out of targets. The report uses the same information as has been reported for years about the English Defence League, its former leader Tommy Robinson, and the likes of Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer – both banned from the UK in part because of Hope Not Hate’s political activism.

And the report mentions Breitbart News and one of its editors, Ben Shapiro, who it says has “written Islamophobic commentary claiming ‘Islam Is At War With The West’.” The report was presumably finalised before the San Bernardino terrorist attacks of last week.

When asked about the late editing of the report to remove Ms. Saraswati’s name, Nick Lowles, the group’s director, told Breitbart London:

“Our decision to withdraw Raquel Sarawita’s [sic] name had nothing to do with Maajid [Nawaz]’s hysterical and absurd outburst on social media. It was done after consultation with people who know her. However, on a purely factual level we stand by what we had stand [sic] in that she has been linked to the Clarion Project.

“Our decision to include Zuhdi Jasser was because of his involvement/support for groups like ACT! for America and the Coalition to Stop Sharia, groups that clearly fit our description of counter-jihadist groups. As you will know, ACT! for America is led by Brigitte Gabriel, one of the most prominent anti-Muslim activists in the US and someone who has gone on record to say that there is no such thing as a moderate muslim. A regular writer/contributor for your own organisation I do believe and other fine media outlets like Fox News.”

Mr. Lowles’s confused statement perhaps shines a light on the methodology of the report. The fact that the report authors, including Mr. Lowles himself, had not “consulted” with “people who know” its subjects before publication is perhaps a sign of flawed methodology. Mr Lowles was asked: “Does it make you question the methodology of the whole report, and do you believe this undermines the report’s integrity?”

He failed to respond to this question.

Hope Not Hate’s foreign funding is exclusively being reported on by Breitbart News, who revealed earlier today that the organisation has accepted nearly half a million dollars in recent years from a high profile, hedge-fund manager who also donates to almost every pro-migration organisation in Europe, as well as the Democratic Party of America, and the hardline “BlackLivesMatter” groups.

Mr. Lowles said of his organisation’s foreign funding: “Given Breitbart’s blog this morning on William Reeves there is nothing more I can or wish to add”.