US President Donald Trump has claimed that Paris, the capital of France, is soon going to become a Muslim city. He blamed France’s immigration policy for this. He says that the increasing number of people coming from other countries is changing the identity of the city. Protests have been going on in France for the past month.

According to reports, more than 8 lakh people have taken to the streets. The protest that started over the shortcomings of the school system is slowly growing. On this, Trump called immigration as the reason for the protest and said that Paris will soon become a Muslim city. Come, let us understand in this story what the statistics say about France.

What is the status of Islam in France?

Islam is the second largest religion in France after Christianity. According to a 2019-2020 survey by INSEE and France’s National Institute of Demographic Studies, about 10% of people aged 18 to 59 are Muslim. The majority of the Muslim community in France is Sunni. They originate from areas such as North Africa, Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa.

According to the 2024 report, 76% of Muslims surveyed rated religion as very important in their lives, while 24% rated it as somewhat important. At the same time, in the French overseas territory of Mayotte, about 97% of the population is Muslim. Immigrants are also believed to have contributed to the Muslim population in France. According to INSEE, 76.15 million immigrants lived in France in 2024, which was 11.2% of the country’s total population. However, this data does not divide people into separate categories based on their religion.

How many Muslims will there be in France and Europe by 2050?

In 2017, the Pew Research Center conducted a study on what the Muslim population could be in Europe by 2050. This estimate was made in view of the high immigration situation. According to this, in the case of further immigration, the share of Muslims in the total population of France could reach 18% by 2050. According to currently available surveys, this share is around 10%.

According to the estimates given in the study, the share of Muslim population in Sweden may reach 31.6%. After this, the Muslim population is estimated to be 19.8% in Austria, 19.4% in Germany, 18.2% in Belgium and 18% in France. At the same time, this share was estimated at 17.2% in Britain, 17% in Norway, 16% in Denmark, 15.2% in the Netherlands and 15% in Finland.

Overall, the Muslim population estimates are for 2017 and are made for France as a whole and other countries in Europe, according to which there are signs of an increase in the Muslim population. But it is not right to say that Paris or any other city will become a Muslim city. Because, the data shows. France still has the largest Catholic population and statistics do not currently prove that Muslims will surpass it.