When you look at Europe today, the continent is becoming the hotbed of Islamic extremism, some people operating as so called 'lone wolves', others operating in inspiration of or actually acting on orders from 'Islamic State' or 'Al Qaeda'.
This seems to have been the case in the Paris attacks on 'Charlie Hebdo', the attackers who killed many prominent members of the magazine that routinely lampoons individuals, groups, religion, politics, nothing is off limits, were killed because of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed. Subsequently there after French security forces killed the attackers, burying their bodies in unmarked graves, despite the protest of their families.
There have been frequent attacks on Muslims since the 'Charlie Hebdo' attacks and before, the 'Front National' led by Marine Le Pen have made political bonus out of this and a large percentage of the French population support them. French Jews now feel under threat too in the light of the other attack in Paris, on a Kosher supermarket, France is not the only place where anti-Muslim resentment is reaching fever pitch, the UK has the 'EDL' or 'English Defence League' with other groups like 'Britain First' as well as the 'British National Party' or 'BNP' as well as the old 'National Front' still present and of course 'Combat 18'. A recent Channel 4 documentary featured these groups in Rotherham over Muslim men abusing young English girls and the complicity of the Rotherham police and council - allegedly.
Attacks on Muslims, their places of worship, etc are also happening at a growing rate in the UK, there have been anti-Muslim demonstrations and violence against them in Sweden and Germany, notably Pegida in Germany, it would appear to be a Europe wide rage against the Islamic community.
Some of the obvious reasons this has come about is because from 9/11 onwards the west has been locked in a struggle with an extreme Muslim ideology and now young Muslim men and women leaving Europe and going to fight for 'Islamic State' in Syria, terrorist attacks in European countries and in the US, Muslims seemingly wishing to live cut off from the host communities, the grooming of young girls by Muslim men, the building of mosques, the growth in their population, people like Anjem Choudry in the UK who espouse Sharia for Europe and so it goes on.
Unfortunately it seems the Muslim community finds itself in the wrong place, in the wrong time in history, ordinary Europeans have come to see the faith of Islam as a violent and intolerant ideology because of all of the above mentioned happenings, is there a solution to this, I don't think there is a ready answer right now, we live in a period of history where Islam itself in the middle east is a divided faith.
You have Shia Muslims at the throat of Sunni Muslims, the faith finds itself, whether it realizes it or not, historically in a very troubled period, which will not only have knock on affects for the Islamic world and their diaspora abroad, but for the rest of us too, as we are witnessing in Europe and the west in general.
Could a Syria style civil war erupt between Muslims based in Europe and the host communities, you would probably say no, as for the future, that's unknown, but still the mind can't help but wonder what if?
