AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): An investigation has been launched into an arson attack on a mosque in Auckland, New Zealand.
Police say the fire at the mosque Tuesday morning was arson after CCTV footage showed a person allegedly breaking into the building just before 1am and lighting a fire.
Detective Inspector Callum McNeill said an investigation is underway into the fire at Imam Reza (AS) Mosque on New Lynn’s Astley Ave.
Police said they will be posting officers near the city’s other mosques in the coming days.
The fire smoldered for another eight hours until it could be seen from the street and emergency services got a call, McNeill said.
Police and fire investigators quickly established the fire was deliberately lit when they arrived on the scene.
“Police are following positive lines of inquiry to locate the person responsible,” he said.
“At this early stage, police are still investigating possible motive and we cannot say at this point that it is a hate-related crime.
“We are providing support to the Muslim community and want to reassure the wider community we are working hard to locate the person responsible.”
He said there would be “an increased police presence around mosques” around Auckland “to ensure the community feel safe”.
McNeill has asked anyone who may have witnessed the incident or knew anything about it to contact police and reference file number 241105/3764.
A glass door at the back of the mosque had been smashed and it appeared this was the offender’s entry point under the cover of darkness.
A man connected to the Astley Ave religious center told the Herald police were focusing on a back window found smashed this morning.
“It’s crazy,” he said.
“Doing things like this just creates more hatred, more fear.”
The fire was so intense plastic chairs had melted in the blaze, he said.
Nobody was inside the building at the time of the fire.
“I’m just glad no one was hurt, that it wasn’t during prayer time,” he said.
Mosque chairman Feridoun Salehi said in a message to his community: “There are those who tried to harm us, to shake the very foundations of our sacred space.
“Let us remember that the walls of a masjid are strong, but they are not our true foundation. Our true foundation is our faith, our love, our patience, and our unity. These are the stones that no fire can burn, no attack can weaken, and no words can shake.”
President of the Islamic Council of New Zealand Dr Muhammad Sajjad says the Islamic community is scared and he wants to reassure the community police are investigating today’s fire but it is still early days.
Sajjad said there had been an increased number of concerning incidents related to religion and race-based crime that members of the community had reported to authorities in the past couple of months.
“The people are a bit concerned about the increasing numbers of such incidents.”
The president of the nearby New Lynn Islamic Centre Taaj Mohamed says his organization is dismayed at the suspected arson attack.
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