MPAC Says Meta Political Ads Are Monetizing Islamophobia Ahead of the 2026 Midterms

MPAC says anti-Muslim political messaging is being amplified through paid ads on Meta platforms ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

According to MPAC's Sharia Scare tracker, its Center for Security, Technology, and Policy identified 214 Facebook and Instagram political ads that portrayed Muslim communities or Islamic practices as threats. MPAC says the ads generated an estimated 11.8 million to 13.8 million impressions and cost between $172,600 and $212,525 across nine states. MPAC labels the section "Paid to Hate" and says a fuller report is forthcoming.

The finding sits at the intersection of civil rights, public safety, and election integrity. Meta says in its own 2026 midterm elections update that advertisers running political, election, or social-issue ads must complete authorization and include a paid-for-by disclaimer. Meta also says those ads are stored in the public Ad Library for seven years.

Transparency, however, does not answer the whole question. A disclaimer can show who paid for an ad, but it does not undo the effect of repeated messages telling voters that Muslims, mosques, Islamic schools, or Sharia are threats to American life. MPAC's concern is that platforms profit when candidates and committees buy fear-based messaging at scale.

MPAC has been tracking the same narrative in Congress and state legislatures. Its Sharia Scare tracker lists a Sharia Free America Caucus, federal bills targeting Sharia, and state measures that frame Islamic religious practice as a legal danger. In its May 16 iMPACt newsletter, MPAC said Texas had become a flashpoint for coordinated anti-Muslim harassment and that CSTP was tracking anti-Muslim political ads on Meta platforms.

For SMF, this is not only a national politics story. SMF's mission includes promoting awareness about contemporary Shia religious, political, and social issues to the broader American community. SMF has also worked on anti-Muslim hate, mosque security, immigration policy, and government engagement. When paid political narratives present Muslim civic participation as a threat, they can make local advocacy harder and community safety more fragile.

The danger is cumulative. An individual ad may be framed as commentary on immigration, land use, foreign law, or national security. But when hundreds of ads repeat the same imagery and claims, they can build a climate in which ordinary Muslim religious life appears suspicious. That climate can spill into school-board meetings, city councils, congressional hearings, mosque zoning disputes, and law-enforcement interactions.

Meta's public election policies offer a starting point for accountability. The company says it will block new political, electoral, and social-issue ads during the final week of the campaign, require AI disclosures in certain political ads, and add more information to ads detected as created with third-party AI tools. Civil-rights groups will likely ask whether those systems are sufficient when the issue is not only false voting information but also paid demonization of a religious minority.

MPAC's data gives Muslim organizations a practical task: monitor ads, preserve examples, report policy violations, and alert local partners when digital messaging targets specific communities. For policymakers, the question is whether election transparency rules should also measure how paid platforms profit from bigotry. For communities, the answer must include civic participation, media literacy, and a refusal to let paid fear define Muslim public life.

United States and Saudi Arabia Strike Iraq Days Before Arbaeen

At least 20 Iraqi personnel killed as millions of worshippers travel toward Karbala

The United States and Saudi Arabia conducted joint airstrikes across Iraq overnight Tuesday, killing at least 20 members of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces and wounding 32 others. The attacks occurred as millions of civilian worshippers travel toward Karbala for Arbaeen, which falls on Tuesday, August 4, 2026.

United States Central Command confirmed that American and Saudi fighter aircraft struck weapons and logistics facilities on July 28. The Popular Mobilization Forces reported attacks in Baghdad, Wasit, Nineveh, Basra, Kirkuk, Karbala, and Diyala. The PMF, commonly known as the Hashd al Shaabi, operates as an official component of Iraq’s state security system.

According to the PMF, the attacks killed at least 20 personnel and wounded 32. The organization described the figures as preliminary and reported damage to buildings, vehicles, equipment, and other property.

The deadliest publicly documented attack occurred in the Nineveh Plain at approximately 3:20 a.m. Wednesday. The Nineveh PMF command said seven airstrikes hit the headquarters of the Fourth Regiment of Brigade 30 and a facility operated by the Directorate of Anti Armor Fighters. Eight Brigade 30 personnel and two Anti Armor Directorate personnel were killed. Six others were wounded.

The Nineveh command called the operation “a highly dangerous escalation” and “a violation of Iraq’s sovereignty.”

A separate strike hit the PMF Operations Command headquarters in Basra, wounding two personnel. Iraqi authorities have not released complete information about the individual sites struck in Baghdad, Wasit, Kirkuk, Karbala, or Diyala.

United States and Saudi Arabia acknowledge responsibility

Responsibility for the airstrikes is confirmed. United States Central Command said American and Saudi forces conducted the operation together.

“United States and Saudi fighter aircraft struck multiple terrorist logistics and weapons sites across eastern Iraq,” CENTCOM said in its official statement.

The command said the operation answered more than 30 drone attacks allegedly directed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps during the preceding 72 hours. It accused armed groups in Iraq of targeting American forces and Saudi energy infrastructure.

“The IRGC and its terrorist proxies must cease these attacks to avoid further United States military response,” CENTCOM said.

Saudi Arabia’s Defense Ministry separately acknowledged Saudi participation.

Major General Turki al Malki, the ministry’s official military spokesperson, said drones targeting Saudi petroleum facilities had come from Iraqi territory. He accused armed groups supported by Iran of conducting the attempted attacks.

Al Malki said Saudi Arabia reserved the right to respond “at the appropriate time and place.”

He also said the kingdom had an inherent right to defend its territory and national assets. Following the airstrikes, the Saudi Defense Ministry said the kingdom did not seek further escalation but would respond to any attack against it.

Allegations remain disputed

Iran denied directing attacks against Saudi Arabia. An Iranian military official described the accusations as a “major miscalculation.”

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq also denied responsibility for the drone attacks and called the Saudi claims fabricated. Neither Washington nor Riyadh has publicly released evidence identifying the Iraqi units that allegedly launched the drones.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al Zaidi had ordered an investigation into the alleged drone launches before the airstrikes occurred. Iraq said it would not permit its territory to be used for attacks against neighboring countries.

The identity of the countries that conducted the airstrikes is therefore confirmed. The allegation that the specific PMF personnel and facilities struck were responsible for the preceding drone attacks remains contested.

Iraq condemns violation of its sovereignty

The Iraqi presidency condemned the attacks as an unacceptable violation of Iraqi sovereignty and an assault on official state security institutions. The presidency called on all parties to respect Iraq’s sovereignty and refrain from actions that could threaten its security and stability. The prime minister called an emergency meeting of the Ministerial Council for National Security.

President Donald Trump reportedly said the operation was coordinated with the Iraqi government. Iraqi officials have not publicly confirmed approving the strikes. The Iraqi government’s condemnation raises questions about the nature of any claimed coordination.

No individual American military commander has publicly addressed the civilian implications of conducting strikes across Iraq during the Arbaeen pilgrimage. The American military response has so far come through CENTCOM’s institutional statement.

Arbaeen pilgrims enter an expanding conflict zone

The attacks come during the final days before Arbaeen, one of the largest annual religious gatherings on earth. Arbaeen takes place on the twentieth day of Safar and marks forty days since the martyrdom of Imam Husain (AS), the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, at the Battle of Karbala in 680. Iraqi religious authorities have placed this year’s observance on Tuesday, August 4, 2026. Pilgrims are already walking toward Karbala from Basra, Najaf, Baghdad, and other parts of Iraq. Others are entering through Iraqi airports and land crossings.

These innocent worshippers include families, children, elderly visitors, religious students, volunteers, and people with disabilities. They come from Iraq, Iran, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Lebanon, the Gulf states, Africa, Europe, North America, and other regions. Iraqi figures show the international scale of the gathering. In 2025, more than 4.1 million foreign pilgrims from 140 countries entered Iraq for Arbaeen. Total attendance in Karbala exceeded 21 million.

More than 1.27 million foreign pilgrims had already entered Iraq during the current religious season by July 25, according to Iraqi security officials.

Volunteers operate thousands of roadside service stations that provide pilgrims with free meals, water, medical care, transportation, and places to rest. UNESCO recognizes this tradition of service and hospitality as part of humanity’s intangible cultural heritage.

One of the provinces struck was Karbala, the destination of the pilgrimage. Other affected provinces sit along routes used by worshippers traveling toward the holy city.

There is no verified evidence that the latest airstrikes deliberately targeted pilgrims or that Arbaeen worshippers were among the casualties. However, conducting military operations across several Iraqi provinces during the pilgrimage creates a serious risk of civilian harm, panic, disrupted transportation, and further escalation.

Arbaeen pilgrims are peaceful civilians participating in a religious observance with a history stretching back more than a thousand years. Governments and armed forces involved in the conflict bear responsibility for protecting worshippers and keeping pilgrimage routes, border crossings, airports, service stations, religious sites, and civilian gathering areas away from military operations.

Sources

United States Central Command: https://www.centcom.mil/MEDIA/PUBLIC-RELEASES/Article/4558191/us-saudi-forces-strike-iran-backed-terrorist-sites-in-iraq/

Reuters on the strikes and Iraqi response: https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/us-saudis-attack-iran-backed-groups-iraq-threatening-intensify-conflict-2026-07-29/

Reuters on the Saudi account: https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/saudi-arabia-says-drones-launched-iraq-targeting-oil-facilities-intercepted-2026-07-28/

National Iraqi News Agency: https://ninanews.com/website/News/Details?key=1307903

Saudi Press Agency: https://www.spa.gov.sa/en/N2588234

Iraqi Arbaeen participation figures: https://imamhussain.gov.iq/index.php/english/47012

UNESCO on Arbaeen service and hospitality: https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/provision-of-services-and-hospitality-during-the-arba-in-visitation-01474

Reported Strike Near Shalamcheh Raises Concerns as Millions Prepare for Arbaeen Pilgrimage

As millions of Muslims prepare to travel to Iraq for Arbaeen, reports of a strike near the Shalamcheh border crossing have raised fresh concerns about the safety of religious pilgrims entering the country.

According to Iran's Mehr News Agency, citing Khuzestan Deputy Governor for Security and Law Enforcement Valiollah Hayati, missiles struck the area around the passenger terminal at the Shalamcheh border crossing on the Iran Iraq border. Iranian officials attributed the strike to the United States. Initial Iranian media reports stated that two people had been killed. Subsequent reporting from other outlets described conflicting casualty information, with some later reports stating that no casualties had occurred. As of publication, the casualty count has not been independently reconciled.

Regardless of the conflicting casualty reports, the reported strike has drawn attention because of its location. Shalamcheh is one of the most important border crossings used by Muslims traveling into Iraq to perform ziyarat and participate in Arbaeen. Every year, millions of pilgrims pass through the crossing on their way to the holy cities of Najaf and Karbala. In addition to large numbers of Iranian pilgrims, the crossing is widely used by pilgrims from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and other countries who travel through Iran before entering Iraq.

Only days before the reported strike, Iranian and Iraqi officials announced that Shalamcheh and the country's other major border crossings had completed preparations for Arbaeen. Authorities have mobilized security personnel, medical teams, volunteers, transportation services, and humanitarian support in anticipation of one of the largest annual movements of people anywhere in the world.

Arbaeen commemorates the fortieth day after the martyrdom of Imam Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad. For more than one thousand years, Muslims have observed Arbaeen through peaceful acts of worship, prayer, mourning, charity, and service. Today, the pilgrimage draws tens of millions of worshippers from around the globe, making it one of the largest annual religious gatherings in history.

Many pilgrims spend days or weeks traveling to Karbala. Countless others volunteer their time to provide food, water, shelter, transportation, and medical care free of charge to fellow worshippers. Families, children, elderly pilgrims, religious scholars, humanitarian workers, and volunteers all travel the same routes through border crossings such as Shalamcheh.

The reported strike has renewed concerns about the safety of these civilians as regional hostilities continue. Pilgrims traveling to Iraq for Arbaeen are peaceful noncombatants engaged in a religious observance that has endured continuously for more than a millennium. International humanitarian law requires parties to armed conflict to distinguish between military objectives and civilians and to take constant care to spare civilian populations.

As millions of worshippers begin their journey to Iraq over the coming weeks, protecting pilgrimage routes has become an increasingly urgent humanitarian concern. Border crossings, passenger terminals, highways used by pilgrims, rest stations, humanitarian service centers, and medical facilities supporting the pilgrimage serve civilian purposes and will be relied upon by worshippers from across the Muslim world.

SMF News will continue to monitor developments surrounding the reported strike and provide updates as additional verified information becomes available.

Sources

Mehr News Agency

Associated Press: US military carries out strikes on Iran as both sides threaten civilian infrastructure

The Guardian: Middle East crisis live updates

ANSA: Media report on US missile strike near Iraqi border

Tasnim News Agency: All Iran Iraq border crossings open for Arbaeen pilgrims