EU Commissioner Cautions Parliament About Rising Intolerance

MOSCOW, February 2 (Sputnik), Ekaterina Blinova — A member of the European Commission has warned EU parliamentarians regarding growing Islamophobia, anti-Semitism and homophobia across Europe.

"There is rising anti-Semitism, there is rising Islamophobia, there is rising homophobia. There are people who are actually challenging the position of women in European society," said Frans Timmermans, deputy to European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, as quoted by Agence France Presse.

Addressing the EU member states' representatives at a meeting in Riga, Latvia, the commissioner pointed out the exceptional importance of the rule of law, adding that minorities play a crucial role in European society.

"If Jews in this Europe cannot feel at home, Europe is finished. If Jews believe their future is not in Europe, Europe has no future. And this applies to Muslims alike — and to other minorities. If gay people think they have to go back into the closet, we have no future for Europe," Frans Timmermans stressed.

The Charlie Hebdo massacre in France has aggravated longstanding ethnic and religious tensions in Europe. On January 7-9, Islamists attacked the headquarters of the satirical magazine and a Jewish kosher grocery, killing 17 people.  The tragedy triggered concerns regarding the threat of homegrown terrorism among Europeans and sparked a series of anti-Islamic actions across the EU.

"Thirty-three acts against mosques in particular and 95 threats had been reported to authorities since the January 7-9 shooting spree by three French jihadists that killed 17, compared to a total of 133 such incidents in 2014," Agence France Presse summed up in the end of January, citing the National Observatory Against Islamophobia.

In mid-January, the Turkish Ambassador to Paris, Hakkı Akil told Hurriyet, a Turkish news agency, about alarming anti-minority tendencies flourishing in Europe.

"Not just Islamophobia, anti-Semitism has also escalated in Europe lately. This racism and xenophobia in Western Europe is not something that only targets Muslims," Hakkı Akil emphasized.

Commenting on the issue, on Holocaust Remembrance Day, January 27, European Jewish Congress chief Moshe Kantor warned that Europe could soon face "a new exodus of Jews." German Chancellor Angela Merkel shares Mr. Kantor's stance: last week she blasted those Germans who attacked Jews because of their Jewishness or support for Israel.