Rabat – A recent Islamophobic attack against mosque goers in the province of Ontario has sparked more concerns and frustration among Muslims in Canada.
President of the Islamic Society of Markham Qasir Nasir Khan commented on the Islamophobic act, stressing that Muslims across the country have a “reason to be concerned.”
Last week on Thursday, a 28-year-old man drove his car directly towards mosque goers , trying to hit them with the vehicle.
The man also yelled threats and slurs during the Islamophobic attack.
On Sunday, Canadian police announced the arrest of the culprit, who was charged in what the police described as a “suspected hate-motivated incident” at the mosque.
In response to the attack, Khan told reporters that the suspect threatened to “burn down our mosque.”
“He uttered slurs about the Prophet [Muhammad],” Khan explained.
Citing similar Islamophobic attacks, including the Quebec mosque shooting in 2017 and the heinous murder of a Muslim family in the city of London, Ontario in 2021, he explained why Muslims in the country have had fears recently.
“Whether looking at the Quebec City mosque massacre, or the London attack where an individual ran down an entire family with his truck, our commitments have reasons to feel afraid,” Khan said.
In 2021, Canada police charged a 20-year-old man with four counts of fourth degree murder and one count of attempted murder after murdering four members of a Muslim family.
The man hit the family members with his truck.
In 2017, a gunman killed six Muslims at a mosque in Quebec City.
The attacks come amid vows from the government to step up efforts to fight Islamophobia and all other forms of hatred.
Last year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stressed the Canadian government’s pledge to fight Islamophobia during the National Day of Remembrance of the Quebec City Mosque Attack and Action against Islamophobia.
“Today, we pay tribute to the victims of this hateful act of terror, who were senselessly killed at the hands of bigotry, Islamophobia, and racism,” he said.
Read Also: Activists Slam EU For Inaction Against Islamophobia
