Britain unveils a new definition of extremism amid the escalation of hate crimes against Jews and Muslims

LONDON: Britain on Thursday unveiled a new definition of extremism in response to a surge in hate crimes against Jews and Muslims since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 and the subsequent Israeli military campaign in the Gaza Strip, but critics say the change threatens to infringe on freedom of expression.

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak warned that Islamist and far-right extremists were deliberately undermining Britain's multiracial democracy and called for more efforts to tackle the problem.

According to a Jewish organization, anti-Semitic incidents rose 147 percent in 2023 to record levels since October 7. Meanwhile, the “Tel Mama” group, which monitors anti-Muslim incidents, said last month that hate crimes against Muslims have increased by 335 percent since then.

“Today’s actions will ensure that the government does not inadvertently provide a platform for those who seek to undermine democracy and deprive others of basic rights,” said Michael Gove, the local government minister who heads the department that issued the new definition of extremism.

“This is the first step in a series of measures to confront extremism and protect our democracy,” Gove added.

The new definition states that extremism “is the promotion or reinforcement of an ideology based on violence, hatred, or fanaticism,” aiming to destroy basic rights and freedoms. Or undermine or replace liberal parliamentary democracy in Britain or deliberately create an environment for others to achieve those outcomes.

Britain already bans groups it says are involved in terrorism, and it is a criminal offense to support or join such organizations. Hamas is among 80 banned international organizations.

Groups that will be identified as extremist after a “rigorous” assessment over the next few weeks will not be subject to any action under criminal laws and will still be allowed to organize demonstrations.

But the government will not provide it with any financing or any other form of dealing. Currently, no group is officially defined as extremist under the previous definition in place since 2011.

Gove said in an interview last Sunday that some recent large pro-Palestinian marches in central London were organized by “extremist organizations” and that citizens may choose not to support such protests if they know they are giving recognition to those groups.

But critics warned that the new definition could backfire even before it was announced.

"The problem with defining extremism from the top is that it catches people we don't want to catch," said Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury.

“It could mistakenly deprive us of what we enjoy to a very great extent in this country, which is very broad freedom of expression and the ability to dissent forcefully,” Welby told BBC Radio on Wednesday.