LONDON, June 26 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – US President George W. Bush, French counterpart Jacques Chirac and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon are the worst "Islamophobes" of 2004, a prominent British Muslim rights group said.

The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) selected the trio in their annual "Islamophobia Awards" to highlight growing anti-Muslim prejudice, Reuters reported Saturday, June 26.

"It is with great sadness that we reveal this year’s winners," the group said in a statement, regretting that "the competition was extremely tough and we see no signs of this abating in the year to come."

Bush got the top satirical "Islamophobe of the year" award for his so-called anti-terror war, which the IHRC said was in fact a crusade against Islam.

In its annual report on the status of American Muslims' civil rights, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) revealed a disturbing 70 percent increase in anti-Muslim incidents nationwide during 2003.

A recent Senate report said the US Muslim community has taken the brunt  of the Patriot Act and other federal powers applied in the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Also, the US-led invasion-turned occupation of oil-rich Iraq has been seen by most Muslims worldwide as part of Bush's new crusade.

No weapons of mass destruction, the main rational for war, were found in the occupied Arab country more than 16 months after US tanks rolled into the capital Baghdad .

Last week, the independent commission investigating the 9/11 attacks said it found "no credible evidence" of a link between Al-Qaeda and Iraq, refuting another claim exploited by the administration to justify the invasion.

Islamophobic Politician

Chirac and Sharon were named joint winners of the "Most Islamophobic International Politician".

Chirac outraged Muslims last year when he described hijab as "aggressive" during a campaign to ban hijab in public schools.

In November, French human rights groups warned of the unprecedented escalation of Islamophobia and racism against the Muslim and Arab community in France during the past two years.

Sharon was included after another year of incessant Israeli raids into the occupied Palestinian territories and continued aggressions on innocent Palestinians.

" Sharon has a whole history of being Islamophobic and basically racist over Palestine and the way that the Palestinians have been treated," commission chairman Massoud Shadjareh said.

Internal Awards  

Sharon "has a whole history of being Islamophobic and basically racist over Palestine"

On the internal arena, far-right British National Party leader Nick Griffin was named most Islamophobic British politician while the right-leaning Daily Telegraph took the media award.

London ’s police were given a special award for, inter alia, "disproportionately targeting Muslims".

British Muslims have repeatedly complained of maltreatment by the police and the stop-and-search operations  under the Terrorism Act for no apparent reason other than being Muslims.

More than 35,000 Muslims were stopped and searched last year without reason, with fewer than 50 charged, whereas before the 9/11 attacks only around 2,000 Muslims were stopped and searched.

The head of Britain ’s government-funded Commission for Racial Equality, Trevor Phillips, welcomed the awards as an important step to "fight bigotry and prejudice against Muslims".

Britain ’s leading Muslim umbrella organization, the Muslim Council for Britain , said Islamophobia was becoming institutionalized.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan had condemned growing Islamophobia in the West, saying since the 9/11 attacks many Muslims, particularly in the West, have found themselves the objects of suspicion, harassment and discrimination.