Baku (UNA) – The Director-General of the Union of OIC News Agencies (UNA), Mohammed bin Abed Rabbo Al-Yami, affirmed that Islamophobia, or anti-Muslim hatred, is among the most dangerous trends threatening harmony and coexistence between civilizations.
This statement was delivered on his behalf on Monday by UNA’s media advisor, Al-Zubair Al-Ansari, at the International Conference titled “Islamophobia: Unveiling Bias and Dismantling Stereotypes” held in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Al-Yami highlighted that Islamophobia is particularly prevalent in influential spheres, notably the media, stressing the intrinsic link between media and Islamophobia. He explained that media shapes public perceptions and concepts about peoples and cultures, making it susceptible to unprofessional and unethical exploitation to serve specific agendas, leveraging its powerful influence to perpetuate cultural stereotypes and false perceptions about nations and religions.
He pointed to a dangerous recent trend of Islamophobia in media, moving beyond traditional overt forms—such as stereotyping, inciting hatred, or negative portrayals of Muslims—to more covert manifestations, characterized by biased media coverage of events involving Muslim-majority countries or populations.
Al-Yami traced the manifestations of this new media Islamophobia through two prominent global events of the past five years: Azerbaijan’s patriotic war in 2020 to liberate its territories in Karabakh and surrounding regions from Armenian occupation, and the ongoing tragedy of the Palestinian people in Gaza since the events of October 7, 2023, resulting in thousands of civilian deaths.
He noted that, in Azerbaijan’s case, certain Western media outlets abandoned basic principles of journalistic professionalism, displaying clear bias towards Armenia and attempting to distort Azerbaijan’s significant achievement in liberating its lands and regaining sovereignty after over 30 years of occupation.
Regarding the situation in Gaza, Al-Yami observed that media bias was used to mask profound discrepancies in the Western understanding of human rights as a universal principle applying equally to all people, irrespective of their religious or ethnic backgrounds.
He further emphasized that despite thousands of innocent civilians—mostly women and children—being killed, and widespread starvation and malnutrition among Gaza’s children, many Western media outlets still avoid clearly naming Israeli actions as collective punishment and the use of starvation as a weapon of war, both strictly prohibited under international law.
Al-Yami underscored that hesitation and attempts by Western international media to minimize or soften ongoing Israeli violations in Gaza only prolong Palestinian suffering and obstruct peaceful solutions that ensure the rights of all and promote regional peace and stability.
He called for addressing this subtle form of Islamophobia, concealed under the guise of media bias, through adherence to standards of journalistic professionalism and responsibility, and by addressing issues from a genuinely humanitarian perspective that prioritizes truth and justice regardless of religious or cultural differences.
Concluding his speech, Al-Yami praised Azerbaijan’s efforts in organizing this significant conference under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev, acknowledging his efforts to promote tolerance, intercultural and interreligious coexistence, and to combat all forms of hatred, thereby contributing to building a world founded on pluralism and mutual respect.
