Swastika sprayed on Muslim family's car amid spate of Islamophobic incidents in Australia in wake of New Zealand mosque attacks

Vandals have sprayed Islamophobic abuse and a swastika on a Muslim family’s car in the latest outbreak of racism in Australia in the wake of the Christchurch mosque shootings.

Police in Perth have launched an investigation after graffiti reading “Muslim” and “dogs” was painted on the car alongside the Nazi symbol in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

Mariam Hassan said she was asleep in her house with her husband and their 11-month-old son at the time.

“We have no idea who did it,” she told 9News. “Do people hate us? It’s so upsetting.”

She added: “It’s scary. They could come back and they could do it again, but they could do something worse. They probably wouldn’t even be afraid.”

There has been a spate of Islamophobic incidents in Australia and New Zealand since 50 people were murdered at two mosques on Friday.

Police ramped up security at mosque in Geelong, a city south of Melbourne, after it was threatened with a copycat attack on Sunday.

Two Muslim sisters wearing hijabs were told to “go back to your f***ing country” at a train station in Auckland on the same day.

There have also been at least seven arrests over alleged hate crimes linked to the Christchurch attack in the UK, including a man who called the gunman a "hero".

Funding for security at British mosques is to be increased in the wake of the atrocity, the government announced on Tuesday.

New Zealand's prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, called on her country "to show support for the Muslim community as they return to mosques on Friday".

A two-minute silence will be held to mark a week since the attack, while the call to prayers for Muslims will be broadcast nationally in New Zealand.