Hate crimes are increasing in Spain, and those involved are getting younger
Hate crimes and incidents increase by almost 24% in 2025 in the State and a historical maximum is reached since records began (in 2014)
Spain registers a historic high in hate crimes and incidents, which increased by 23.6% in 2025. In total, up to 2,417 criminal offenses and hate incidents have been recorded, 934 of which are for racism or xenophobia, representing an increase of 16.1% compared to the previous year. The other crimes investigated by the State Security Forces and Corps that have grown in the last year are linked to Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, and dysphobia – the fear, emotional rejection, or discrimination towards people with functional diversity or disability. This is stated in the "Report on the Evolution of Hate Crimes and Incidents in Spain 2025", released by the Ministry of the Interior this Wednesday. Report on the Evolution of Hate Crimes and Incidents in Spain2025, which has been disseminated by the Ministry of the Interior this Wednesday.
The report highlights the increase in minors' participation in crimes, both as perpetrators, which increased by almost 20%, and as victims, with an increase of 17%. In fact, 290 minor victims were recorded in 2025, compared to 247 in 2024. These figures demonstrate, according to the report, the need to maintain specific surveillance on children and adolescents, as they are groups particularly exposed to dynamics of hate, abuse, exclusion, and discrimination.
The Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, has emphasized that the increase in minors' participation is "especially worrying" and has called for greater visibility for hate crimes in society: "Only through awareness will we manage to improve their detection". However, the published data not only shows the importance of paying attention to these age groups but also reinforces the idea of "designing public policies" that incorporate training with the aim of "reducing the normalization of hate, dismantling prejudices, and strengthening a democratic culture of respect for diversity", as detailed in the report.
According to the Ministry of the Interior's conclusion in the report, law enforcement agencies clarified 65.5% of cases and arrested or investigated a total of 1,018 people, 12.5% more than in 2024, the majority of whom were men (78.5%).
Hate crimes in the digital environment, on the rise
The document published by the Spanish government also analyzes the high incidence of Islamophobic acts in the digital environment, which have increased by 450%. Regarding the criminal typology of these hate crimes, threats (a total of 446) and injuries (441) stand out, in first place, followed by the promotion of discrimination (319), damages (119) and insults and degrading treatment (113 in both cases).
Catalonia, the second community with the lowest rate
Catalonia is the second autonomous community in the entire State to have obtained the lowest rate of hate crimes, offenses, and incidents, specifically with 3.82 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. As confirmed by the Report on the Evolution of Hate Crimes and Incidents in Spain, 311 cases were registered, of which 110 were for racism and xenophobia, 99 for sexual orientation or gender, and 48 for ideological reasons. Compared to 2024, the rate has grown by two tenths and 20 more cases have been registered.
At the state level, the ranking of hate crimes is led by Melilla and Navarra, with 21.8 and 15.6 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, respectively, while the Spanish average stands at 4.9 cases.
