https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/mar/25/sadiq-khan-islamophobic-abuse-doubles

Most Islamophobic content referring to London mayor, a prominent voice against online abuse, was on X

The number of Islamophobic posts aimed at Sadiq Khan has more than doubled in a year, according to fresh analysis that suggests the London mayor remains a lightning rod for racist abuse.

Almost 28,000 social media posts referring to Khan included a key Islamophobic phrase last year, a huge increase on the 12,000 sent a year earlier and a more than eight-fold increase from 2022, according to the analysis commissioned by the Greater London authority (GLA).

This year, Khan has already been mentioned alongside Islamophobic keywords 2,180 times. The vast majority of abuse was posted on X, with a record number of posts referring to Khan posted from the UK in the past year. The research found that 89% of the offending Islamophobic posts about Khan since 2015 had originated on the platform.

Khan has been one of the most prominent voices speaking about online abuse, warning that the west must now face up to a “century-defining challenge” after a resurgence of the far right. He has criticised X’s owner, Elon Musk, whom he blames for making the problem of online abuse far worse. Under Musk, the accounts of far-right figures such as Tommy Robinson have been reinstated.

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Article continues at https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/mar/25/sadiq-khan-islamophobic-abuse-doubles