ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top diplomat at the United Nations on Monday called for a collective international response to rising “Islamophobia,” warning that unchecked hate speech and extremist narratives were fracturing societies and threatening global peace and stability.
Speaking at a high-level event to mark the International Day for Countering Hate, Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad said growing intolerance, fueled by politicized media and digital platforms, was targeting not only Muslims but also people of various races, genders and nationalities.
The International Day for Countering Hate is observed each year on June 18, following its institutionalization by the UN in 2023 in response to the global rise in hate-driven violence, incitement and disinformation.
Monday’s event at the UN was hosted by Morocco and the Office on Genocide Prevention.
“The surge in Islamophobia through discriminatory laws, defamation of religious symbols and orchestrated vilification are particularly alarming trends,” Ahmad said. “Media platforms, especially those aligned with dominant political forces, have enabled this hate.”
