MOSCOW (Sputnik) — UK police launched an investigation after several Muslim residents of the country's northern city of Bradford received anonymous letters containing threats, local media reported Tuesday.
According to The Guardian newspaper, the news outlet added that the investigators had already started cooperating with local authorities and communities in order to bring the people responsible for sending the letters to justice.
The country's law enforcement agencies would tighten security measures near Hanover Square, as well as in other town's areas with a strong Muslim presence in order to prevent potential attacks, the newspaper added.
Since the Brexit referendum, the United Kingdom has gone through a surge of hate crimes and anti-migrant sentiment that sometimes targets not only migrants, but also the country's citizens representing different minorities, such as Muslims. In March, the Council of Europe expressed concern over rising xenophobia in the United Kingdom and called on London to make a bigger effort to cope with such developments.
The report on UK compliance with the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities showed that despite UK authorities' efforts to promote tolerance and multiculturalism, recent domestic and international developments have contributed to growing intolerance and xenophobia. In particular, the report blamed the media and some politicians for stirring racial hostilities on the back of perceived rising immigration. The main victims of such narratives have been Muslims, Gypsies, Irish Travelers and Roma, according to CoE.
