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Authored by Mimi Nguyen Ly via The Epoch Times,

The Biden administration is set to develop the "National Strategy to Counter Islamophobia," the first of its kind, Vice President Kamala Harris announced Wednesday.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement that the strategy will be led by the Domestic Policy Council and the National Security Council, and the White House will work with community leaders, advocates, members of Congress, and more, to develop the strategy.

The Department of Justice is investigating the attack as a hate crime. The suspect, Joseph Czuba, pleaded not guilty on Monday to charges of murder, attempted murder, and hate crimes.

Ms. Jean-Pierre said that the latest strategy is "part of President Biden’s directive last year to establish an interagency group to increase and better coordinate U.S. Government efforts to counter Islamophobia, Antisemitism, and related forms of bias and discrimination within the United States."

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre speaks during the daily briefing in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, on Oct. 31, 2023. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

Earlier this year, in May, the Biden administration created the first-ever "National Strategy to Combat Antisemitism."

The administration described the plan as the "most ambitious and comprehensive U.S. government-led effort to fight antisemitism in American history."

Civil Rights Act Expanded

The administration in September expanded the scope of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to prohibit antisemitism and Islamophobia in federally-funded programs.

The administration's latest announcement to "counter the scourge of Islamophobia and hate in all its forms" comes amid an ongoing war between Israel and the Hamas terrorist group.

The war began on Oct. 7, when Hamas terrorists mounted an unprecedented attack on civilians in Israel that killed 1,400 people in the worst attack on the country in decades. Hamas is an Iran-backed Islamist terrorist group that controls the Gaza Strip.

Vice President Harris said in her address:

FBI Director Christopher Wray on Tuesday told members of Congress that the Hamas–Israel war could spark attacks on targets within the United States.

Separately, on Monday, a White House official stated that the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security have been assisting campus police departments and local and state law enforcement to respond to an uptick in anti-Semitism on college and university campuses.

The Department of Education has "expedited its update of the intake process for discrimination complaints under Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, to specifically state that certain forms of Antisemitism and Islamophobia are prohibited by this law," the official said.