Muslim Greens blame British Empire for anti-LGBTQ laws in Middle East

The group is one of the Green Party's Special Interest Groups, as stated on its website, and undertakes "specialist work on behalf of members".

Section Eight of the guidance, titled Understanding How Homonationalism Harms Muslims and Queer Justice, and its Colonial Roots, discusses the issue.

The guidance asserts: "Queerphobic legislation in many Muslim-majority countries is deeply tied to colonialism."

It adds the British Empire's "ambition to transform different cultures and societies into ones that mirrored the forms of violence and oppression that existed in the UK" resulted in "the vast majority of queerphobic legislation in colonies in South Asia, the Middle East and Africa".

"To propose that Muslims are uniquely queerphobic because of Islam denies acknowledging how modern-day queerphobia is strongly rooted in the British Empire, culture, and society."

In contrast, it is claimed the "idea that Muslim identity and Islam is in some way based around hating and marginalising queer communities is itself a form of Islamophobia and anti-Muslim hate".

This, according to the guidance, wrongly imposes the view "not only are Muslims intrinsically queerphobic, but also erases the existence of queer Muslims and conceals the continued harm being done to queer people by the UK Government, the media, and the far-right, particularly around trans rights".

Homosexuality was first decriminalised in the UK in 1967, while the Same Sex Couples Act legalised same-sex marriage in 2013.

It remains a criminal offence in Afghanistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Syria - all of which were never part of the British Empire. Sentences can range up to death.

Iraq, Oman and the United Arab Emirates continue to criminalise homosexuality. While none of them were directly part of the British Empire, they were British protectorates and did come under the influence of the UK.

The guidance states: 'To propose that Muslims are uniquely queerphobic because of Islam denies acknowledging how modern-day queerphobia is strongly rooted in the British Empire, culture, and society'

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Hassan Nasrallah, former leader of Hezbollah, previously claimed people engaging in homosexual acts should be killed, and blamed Western societies which, he said, had deliberately tried to destroy traditional family culture in the Middle East.

Shadow Foreign Office Minister Wendy Morton said: "If that means excusing regimes that hang gay people, so be it. Blaming the British Empire is a curious excuse when Iran and Saudi Arabia were never part of it.

"Conservatives will never apologise for Britain, and we will call out the persecution wherever it happens and whoever is responsible."

Elsewhere, the guidance includes 18 bullet-point examples of Islamophobia.

These include making statements that "equate Muslims with misogynists, paedophiles, uneducated people who "sponge off the state" and implying "Muslims have come here illegally".

Muslim Greens also accuse those who organise "socials and activities around venues with alcohol, excluding observant Muslims," of Islamophobia.

A Green Party spokesman described the guidance as "comprehensive, well thought-through and evidenced".

"It explains the rise and normalisation of Islamophobia in Britain, the role of successive governments and mainstream media in fuelling anti-Muslim hate, and the importance of education and understanding history," the spokesman said.

"Muslim people are disproportionately affected by religiously motivated hate crime and the whole of society has a duty to tackle this. This is a sensible and thorough document that deserves to be read in its entirety."