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gyrlversion · 6 years ago

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Moment yob smashes up mosque during night of carnage

This is the moment a yob was filmed smashing up the windows of a mosque in Birmingham in a late-night rampage.

The mosque targeted is in Perry Barr and was one of five in the city to be vandalised last night with anti-terror officers investigating.

Muslim worshippers in the city say they are afraid to bring the children to prayers after the attacks, which took place less than a week after the Christchurch massacre.

ITV News has obtained CCTV footage of what appears to be one of five attacks on mosques in Birmingham overnight. A man can be seen walking along Broadway, Perry Barr, in the early hours of the morning, before swinging an object at the building https://t.co/zHfPQ5i7DV pic.twitter.com/cXNhSJj1Sn

— ITV News (@itvnews) March 21, 2019

The video footage shows a man with a hat and his face covered walking towards the mosque in the early hours.

He is carrying an object in his hand and uses it to smash a window of the mosque.

Five mosques in the city were attacked in total last night.

They are on Albert Road, Birchfield Road, Slade Road, the Broadway and Witton Road in the city.

The moment a mosque in Perry Barr, Birmingham has its windows smashed up by a yob who has his face covered

The Al-Habib Masjid Mosque on the corner of Birchfield Road and Fentham Road in Perry Barr, Birmingham was attacked

A concerned parent told Sky News that he no longer ‘felt safe taking his five year old to prayers’.

The attack at the Witton Road Islamic Centre in Witton, saw seven windows and two doors smashed up.

The mosque’s imam says that the attack took place between 1.30am and 2am with West Midlands Police saying they were alerted to the other attacks throughout the night.

Officers were called to the mosque on Birchfield Road at 2.32am before realising that the attack had happened earlier.

Volunteers work on fixing the damaged windows at the Witton Road Islamic centre in Birmingham after it was attacked last night

At 3.14am, they were alerted to a similar attack at the mosque on Slade Road, Erdington.

Police then began patrols in areas with mosques and came across the other damaged buildings.

Forensic officers are working to identify evidence, and CCTV is being examined.

Footage of the damaged Witton mosque was posted online by Labour party Councillor for the Bromford and Hodge Hill ward, Majid Mahmood.

Worshippers inspect the damage done to the Witton mosque during last night’s rampage

He tweeted: ‘Unfortunately the Witton Road Islamic Centre was attacked overnight by an individual who used a sledgehammer to break the windows.

‘I said last week that Muslims were afraid after the terrorist attacks in Christchurch.

‘We need support in Brum.’

His words were echoed by the Imam of Witton Islamic Centre.

Sharafat Ali, 66, told Birmingham Live: ‘Its terrible, the community is shocked because of what’s happened in New Zealand.

The mosque’s imam Sharafat Ali, 66 is now calling for more police protection ahead of Friday prayers

Four attacks were confirmed by police this morning, before a fifth one was discovered later in the day

‘We’ve been here for 30 years. In the morning you get 40 worshippers for morning prayer, on Friday you get about two to three hundred.

‘This doesn’t happen in Aston.

‘Tomorrow is Friday prayers and I don’t know what’s going up happen.

‘We are asking the police to give us more security.’

Home Secretary Sajid Javid tweeted: ‘Deeply concerning and distressing to see number of mosques have been vandalised in Birmingham overnight. @WMPolice are investigating motive but let me be clear – hateful behaviour has absolutely no place in our society & will never be accepted.’

Labour’s deputy leader Tom Watson tweeted: ‘I’m deeply saddened and disturbed by the attacks that have taken place on mosques across Birmingham in the early hours of this morning.

The motive for the vandalism is unclear, with anti-terror police now investigating the overnight attacks

‘Mosques are places of worship where people should feel safe and I’m appalled that they’ve been targeted in this way.

‘I stand in complete solidarity with the British Muslim community against the growing tide of Islamophobia we are facing in this country.

‘We have recently seen the tragic consequences of right wing extremism in New Zealand. I hope the government takes the necessary steps to reassure the British Muslim community and that the perpetrators of these hate-fuelled attacks are swiftly brought to justice.’

Shabana Mahmood, Labour MP for Birmingham Ladywood, tweeted: ‘The reports of attacks on mosques across Birmingham are truly terrible.

‘I have spoken with the Chief Constable & will be in constant contact with community leaders throughout the day.

‘I would urge all residents to remain calm & call Crime Stoppers with any info you may have.’

The Jame Masjid on Birchfield Road in Birmingham also had its windows smashed with a sledgehammer

The mosque’s windows were boarded up after volunteers had cleared up all the glass outside the building

West Midlands Police Chief Constable Dave Thompson said: ‘Since the tragic events in Christchurch, New Zealand, officers and staff from West Midlands Police have been working closely with our faith partners across the region to offer reassurance and support at mosques, churches and places of prayer.

‘At the moment we don’t know the motive for last night’s attacks.

‘What I can say is that the force and the Counter Terrorism Unit are working side-by-side to find whoever is responsible.

‘At difficult times like this, it is incredibly important that everyone unites against those who seek to create discord, uncertainty and fear in our communities.’

West Midlands Police Chief Constable Dave Thompson confirmed they are working alongside counter-terrorism officers

Representatives of the Birmingham Council of Mosques slammed the attack and called on police to do more

John Cotton, Labour councillor for Glebe Farm and Tile Cross areas in the city, tweeted: ‘Appalled to see that Birmingham mosques have been the target of vandalism and violence overnight.

‘I’m working with @WMPolice & @BhamCityCouncil to ensure we find those responsible & support our Muslim communities.

‘These thugs do not speak for Birmingham & will not divide us.’

The Birmingham Council of Mosques said it a statement: ‘As far as we can tell the Masajids were based around Handsworth/Aston and Witton.

‘We ask the masajids to be vigilant and do not hesitate in reporting any unusual/suspicious behaviour to the police immediately.

‘It is vital you report it so it can be logged.’

Javid Iqbal, a spokesman for Witton Islamic Centre said: ‘We’ve had a white intruder strike in the middle of the night. He has arrived with a sledgehammer and smashed one window. The force of the swing has actually meant he had lost his grip and the sledgehammer ended up in the middle of the mosque.

‘Incredibly, he has then gone away for half and hour and come back with another hammer to damage several more windows. There’s about five or six windows that have been put through.

Seven windows and two doors were smashed in the attack that took place between 1.30am and 2am

Mosque volunteers could be seen sweeping up the broken glass in the aftermath of the vandalism

Police officers were spotted helping mosque officials clean up the glass that littered the pavement outside one of the damaged mosques

‘In that half and hour, other mosques in a two mile radius or so have been attacked as well. So I don’t know if he was working in a team and there were several of them.

‘Whatever the case, it is just a minority of idiots that do not reflect the values of this city or this community.

‘We have boarded up the mosque but it remains open today for worshippers. I’m yet to speak to insurers about the cost of the damage.

‘We have asked for extra resources from police, not just for Friday prayers but also for early in the morning and late at night.’

Worshipper Rashid Mohammed, 33, a father-of-three, said: ‘I was afraid something like this might happen after New Zealand. It was only a matter of time.

‘I won’t lie, I’ve been looking over my shoulder since Christchuch, even to the point where I make sure I’m by an emergency exit when I pray in case anything happens.

‘All it takes is one small-minded racist and it is very sad to see this happening in this day and age. We are proud to live in such a diverse city and we are devastated that these incidents still happen.’

Anyone with information has been asked to contact police via Live Chat between 8am and midnight, via 101 any time, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555

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gyrlversion · 6 years ago

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Five Birmingham mosques smashed up in over-night sledgehammer attack

Five mosques in Birmingham had their windows smashed with a sledgehammer overnight, prompting an anti-terror investigation and calls for more police protection ahead of Friday prayers.

Seven windows and two doors were smashed in the late night attack at the Witton Road Islamic Centre in Witton.

The mosque’s imam says that the attack took place between 1.30am and 2am with West Midlands Police saying they were alerted to the attacks throughout the night.

They are yet to confirm the motive behind the late-night rampage and the West Midlands Counter Terrorism Unit is also investigating.

Volunteers work on fixing the damaged windows at the Witton Road Islamic centre in Birmingham after it was attacked last night

The mosques attacked are on Albert Road, Birchfield Road, Slade Road, Broadway and Witton Road in the city.

Officers were called to the mosque on Birchfield Road at 2.32am before realising that the attack had happened earlier.

At 3.14am, they were alerted to a similar attack at the mosque on Slade Road, Erdington.

Police then began patrols in areas with mosques and came across the other damaged mosques.

Forensic officers are working to identify evidence, and CCTV is being examined.

Footage of the damaged Witton mosque was posted online by Labour party Councillor for the Bromford and Hodge Hill ward, Majid Mahmood.

Worshippers inspect the damage done to the Witton mosque during last night’s rampage

He tweeted: ‘Unfortunately the Witton Road Islamic Centre was attacked overnight by an individual who used a sledgehammer to break the windows.

‘I said last week that Muslims were afraid after the terrorist attacks in Christchurch.

‘We need support in Brum.’

His words were echoed by the Imam of Witton Islamic Centre.

Sharafat Ali, 66, told Birmingham Live: ‘Its terrible, the community is shocked because of what’s happened in New Zealand.

The mosque’s imam Sharafat Ali, 66 is now calling for more police protection ahead of Friday prayers

Four attacks were confirmed by police this morning, before a fifth one was discovered later in the day

The motive for the vandalism is unclear, with anti-terror police now investigating the overnight attacks

‘We’ve been here for 30 years. In the morning you get 40 worshippers for morning prayer, on Friday you get about two to three hundred.

‘This doesn’t happen in Aston.

‘Tomorrow is Friday prayers and I don’t know what’s going up happen.

‘We are asking the police to give us more security.’

Home Secretary Sajid Javid expressed his concern at the news of the attacks. He tweeted: ‘Deeply concerning and distressing to see number of mosques have been vandalised in Birmingham overnight. @WMPolice are investigating motive but let me be clear – hateful behaviour has absolutely no place in our society & will never be accepted.’