Islamic groups are calling out double standards in policing and political responses after two Muslim women were attacked in the latest in a spate of incidents impacting the community throughout Australia.
Two Muslim women were allegedly assaulted in separate incidents at a shopping centre at Epping, in Melbourne's north, on Thursday.
An unidentified woman allegedly assaulted a 30-year-old Lalor woman inside the shopping complex about 1.10pm before she pushed a 26-year-old Wollert woman to the floor in a separate incident about 10 minutes later, Victoria Police said.
The 26-year-old was wearing a hijab and was allegedly smacked across the face and shoved onto the tiles, the Islamic Council of Victoria said.
The victims, one of who is pregnant, were taken to hospital with bruises, scratches and potentially long-term physical injuries, the Australian National Imams Council said.
The offender is believed to have run off with a man.
Investigations into the incidents were ongoing, with detectives probing whether the assaults were "prejudice motivated", a police spokeswoman said.
"There is absolutely no place in our society for discriminatory, racist or hate-based behaviour and such activity will not be tolerated," she said.
Despite the prompt response from police and paramedics, the victims said they felt ignored and feared for their safety, the imam council said.
It said one woman who shared details of the incident on social media was threatened and when she reported the threats to police, was told to ignore them.
The incidents in Melbourne came after Muslim leader Imam Wesam Charkawi was allegedly targeted by someone who deliberately tried to run him over with a car near a Western Sydney school in December.
In another incident, a Muslim woman and her daughter were verbally attacked inside a Sydney retail store.
The Australian Federation of Islamic Councils said it was alarmed at a continuing trend of physical assaults against members of the Muslim community.
Council president Rateb Jneid expressed grave concern over the Epping attacks, which he said were indicative of a growing trend of Islamophobic violence.
"The physical security of Australian Muslims is being threatened on an almost daily basis, yet the response from authorities and political leaders remains grossly insufficient," Dr Jneid said.
"When compared to the swift and significant attention given to less severe incidents affecting other communities, the disparity in response is not only apparent but also unacceptable."
The Islamic Council of Victoria is demanding more action from police and governments to ensure justice is served, expressing disappointment the prime minister and Victorian premier have not publicly called out the incidents.
"The Muslim community feels increasingly unsafe, especially because of the disparity in how different communities are supported in the face of hate crimes," the group said.
"The stark contrast between the swift police and government response to the recent attacks on the Jewish community and the silence on Islamophobic incidents is deeply concerning."
The three organisations are demanding better protocols to take concerns seriously to protect the Muslim community against Islamophobic attacks and bring perpetrators to swift justice.
