We wish we could be upbeat and say that oppression and injustice have eased for the global Ummah since last Ramadan. But nothing could be further from the truth.

As Gaza continues to bleed from the Israeli genocide, vultures from the “international community” are circling, ready to pick over its bones. Safe in the bosom of US patronage, Israel has expanded its occupation of Muslim lands to new territory in Syria and Lebanon and has also bombed Yemen and Iran. Meanwhile, the increasingly unhinged egotist in the White House has attacked Iran, Nigeria and Venezuela in a desperate attempt to preserve his country’s waning global influence.

And as this aggression unfolds, the UN is a mere spectator, its impotence just reminding us that it was never designed to serve everyone equally in the first place.

At home, the rise of the far right continues apace. The endemically Islamophobic Reform Party rides high in the polls by scapegoating migrants and minorities and deflecting from structural failures that are too distant and complicated for people to recognise. This hostile environment intends to drive Muslims towards assimilation and simultaneously manufacture public consent for imperial wars in Muslim lands.

If there is a silver lining, it is that the so-called rules-based world order and the erosion of the rule of law based on civilised norms have been fully exposed as a sham. With increased public resistance to state abuses has come increased authoritarianism, and that repression has peeled away the mask of freedom, democracy and human rights.

Things look like they will get worse before they get better. But times of crisis also present an opportunity. Whatever the scale of the problems confronting us, we should remember that despair does not feature in the vocabulary of the believer. The nation of Muhammad (saw) is always optimistic and never loses faith in Allah’s justice. As the Holy Quran reminds us in Sura Ale Imran, verse 139, “Do not falter or grieve, for you will have the upper hand, if you are ˹true˺ believers.”

What sets IHRC apart from others is that we believe that our work should not just be about firefighting and responding to crises. As the old order and institutions crumble, we should also be preparing replacements that embody our values and concerns.

Despite our relatively small size we have built an enviable reputation for punching above our weight, foreseeing problems, challenging them and trying to help steer the direction of policy. The ever-expanding anti-terrorism legislation over the last 25 years is a case in point. IHRC has been at the forefront of opposing it as a racist and authoritarian imposition serving domestic and foreign policy motives that have nothing to do with public safety.

In conjunction with other groups we formulated the Convivencia Alliance, a cross-faith, international initiative for a just peace in the Middle East that seeks to substitute the current militarised ‘solutions’ based on racist oppression with an approach predicated on shared values and commitment to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

IHRC continues to fearlessly challenge Zionist inspired Islamophobia in our political system.  We have spearheaded boycott campaigns against the Zionist state and its financial supporters. Over time our Boycott Israeli Dates campaign has been taken up by the entire Muslim community in Britain and is now extended to all Israeli products and pro-Israel companies.

We are also the only Muslim organisation to have a dedicated legal department, supporting the needy and vulnerable at a time when rising Islamophobia makes access to the law more important than ever.

And IHRC continues to enjoy consultancy status at the United Nations, a position that allows us to pressure the organisation to address injustices against Muslims worldwide.

We are different because we fight on many fronts: striving to change and challenge government policy, defending the wronged, calling out the oppressors, empowering the community, forming alliances, devising alternatives and setting the agenda.

All this has only been made possible with your help, for which we are eternally grateful. It is your continuing support and prayers that keep us going, even in the face of increasingly aggressive efforts by our adversaries to shut us down. Their aim is not just to close IHRC, but to sever the lifeline we extend to the oppressed, in pursuance of their heinous goals.

In helping IHRC you are also positioning yourself as a part of the struggle to establish justice, Allah has promised you His assistance on the Day when there will be no one to help you. The Prophet (pbuh) said in a famous narration. “Whoever relieves the hardship of a believer in this world, Allah will relieve his hardship on the Day of Resurrection. Whoever helps ease one in difficulty, Allah will make it easy for him in this world and the Hereafter….”

We hope you can follow the example of our beloved Prophet and increase your assistance to us during the blessed month of Ramadan. Together, we will strive to create a better and just society for all, insha-Allah.