Islamic school/mosque in Hamilton target of firebombing on first day back to school after holidays

January 4, 2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Montreal, Quebec, January 4th, 2010- The Muslim Council of Montreal (MCM) condemns the recent firebombing attack on an Islamic school/mosque in Hamilton, Ontario, occurring in the early hours of Monday, January 4th, 2010 and calls for increased vigilance against hate crimes.

“This despicable attack is far from being an isolated incident and instead of being an attack on a single centre, it is an attack on the values of respect, peace and tolerance that we all hold dear in our nation,” stated Salam Elmenyawi, president of MCM. “In addition to strengthening the application of current laws, new policies and laws are needed to effectively fight hate, racism and discrimination within our society. A clear message must be sent out that hate crimes are atrocious acts which absolutely will not be tolerated.”

 

MCM calls for harsher penalties and zero-tolerance for all hate crimes and religious discrimination and suggests that the federal government initiate a countrywide campaign to raise awareness of hate crimes and racism within Canadian society and to fight these social ills.

 

“We are grateful that no children were at the school at the time of the attack and that none were hurt,” Elmenyawi said. “We urge all members of the community to exercise increased caution and report any suspicious individuals or activity to the authorities immediately. We call on Hamilton police’s hate crime unite and chief arson investigator to take all possible measures to bring the perpetrators to justice.”

                                               

A Molotov cocktail was launched through a smashed window of the Islamic School of Hamilton, which is attended by 200 students from kindergarten to grade 8. The attack is estimated to have left damages of $3,000. The city is home to a Canadian Muslim community of 20,000.

 

CONTACT:

Salam Elmenyawi

Muslim Council of Montreal (MCM)

Ph.: (514) 748-8427

Fax: (514) 747-9139

E-mail: info@muslimcouncil.org

Website: http://www.muslimcouncil.org

 

The Muslim Council of Montreal (MCM) is an umbrella organization representing a number of Islamic institutions in the Montreal region. There are over 200,000 Muslims in Montreal, about 900,000 in Canada and 1.7 billion worldwide.

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