Local and federal authorities are investigating a possible hate crime in Philadelphia after early-morning prayers at the Al-Aqsa Islamic Society were disrupted by the discovery of a severed pig’s head on the mosque’s doorsteps.
A mosque spokesman said surveillance cameras captured video of a red pickup truck that drove by the building twice Sunday night; during its second pass, an item was seen thrown out of the vehicle’s window and landing at the door of the mosque.
A worker opening the mosque — which is in the same building as an Islamic school and the Arab American Development Corp. — found the pig’s head around 6 a.m. Monday.
Marwan Kreidie, executive director of the Arab American Development Corp., which is in charge of the al-Aqsa Islamic Society building in Kensington neighborhood, North Philadelphia, said "They are investigating it as a hate crime, which it is.”
He noted that the individual behind insult knew that in Muslim culture pork is considered haram (forbidden or proscribed by Islamic law) and therefore is not part of a Muslim individual's diet.
"Let's hope this doesn't escalate," he said. "It could be a bomb next time."
Philadelphia Mayor-elect Jim Kenney also reacted to the insult, denouncing it as an act of bigotry.
"We cannot allow hate to divide us now, in the face of unprecedented difficulties," he said in a statement. "I ask all Philadelphians to join me in rejecting this despicable act and supporting our Muslim neighbors."
The attack happened amid growing fears of a surge in Islamophobia a week after Tashfeen Malik, 29, and her husband Syed Rizwan Farook, 28, stormed a holiday party in San Bernardino, California on Wednesday, killing at least 14 people and injuring 21 in the deadliest mass shooting in the US in three years.
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