Scottish Mosques Boost Security amid Foiled Plot and Hate Attacks
Omar Afzal, from the Scottish Association of Mosques, said there was “a great deal of fear and alarm within the community.” He added: “It’s feeling really under threat and really vulnerable. Mosques across the country are really looking at their security measures and increasing them.”
Several mosques have already hired private guards, with Glasgow Central Mosque — the largest in the country — now under 24-hour protection. Afzal said this move reflected the escalation of threats in recent months.
In March, a teenager threw paint at a mosque in Aberdeen and smashed a window while people were inside.
The following month, vandals targeted a mosque in Elgin for the third time, damaging several windows.
More recently, the Newton Mearns Islamic Centre reported an incident in which a man allegedly attacked a Muslim schoolgirl in the street and made threats against the community.
And in August, a 17-year-old described in court as “Nazi-obsessed” was jailed for 10 years after plotting to burn down the Inverclyde Muslim Center in Greenock.
The teenager had befriended worshippers to gain access before planning a mass murder.
Afzal said: “If it had not been for the intervention by Police Scotland, you were essentially looking at a mass casualty event, a terrorist attack taking place at that mosque.”
Afzal warned that the climate of Islamophobia is worsening. “Particularly with the things that people are now able to say very comfortably publicly, and the way in which attacks now against Muslims, against mosques, against hotels hosting asylum seekers, have become so normalized. It’s an issue that’s cropped up across the country.
“We can no longer be complacent here in Scotland and think that we are an exception to what’s happening across the UK or across Europe. We’re very much seeing the symptoms now of poisonous rhetoric from politicians, reflected in the media, play out on the streets where very legitimate concerns that people may have are now being weaponized against minority communities and against Muslims.”
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He also pointed out that a public inquiry into Islamophobia in Scotland had already produced recommendations that have not been acted upon. “We’ve seen this coming and I think it’s time now that we take some real tangible action to try and tackle this.”
Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney said: “Violence, prejudice, racism, Islamophobia and antisemitism have no place in our society, and nobody should ever be subjected to them. This Government will always work to ensure every person living in Scotland is protected, and that we are united in our opposition to anyone who would seek to use disorder as a means of division.”
He added: “Scotland is a diverse, multicultural society where everyone is welcome, and I want us to be united in our opposition to anyone who would seek to use disorder and violence to divide people. However, we are not immune to the actions of a violent, misguided minority and therefore we must remain vigilant.”
Source: 5pillarsuk.com
