A Muslim woman was attacked in the early hours of Monday morning in Mayfair, London.
The 55-year-old returned home after suhoor at a friend’s, when she was brutally attacked in London’s exclusive Mayfair area. A man grabbed her from behind and repeatedly punched her in the back of the head.
She fell to the ground face first and he continued his attack with added profanities against Muslims, Ramadan and Islam. He then grabbed her headscarf that was around her neck and then dragged her along the pavement.
The woman was bleeding and the attacker had her blood on his hands and clothes. In his final act of violence he slapped her across the face with his blood-stained hands leaving an imprint of it on her face. She fell unconscious as he ran away leaving her in the street.
The victim was treated in hospital and may need surgery to her face. The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) has been supporting the victim and the matter has been reported to the Metropolitan police.
If you are a victim of a hate crime you can report it to IHRC by calling 0208 904 4222, emailing [email protected] or going to the link provided below.
Woolwich murder and Islamophobia
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Since the murder of British soldier, Lee Rigby on May 22 in Woolwich south east London, Islamophobic attacks have increased across Britain. Numerous mosques and Islamic centres have been fire bombed and targeted with bombs.
A mosque in Braintree, Essex and Gillingham, Kent was attacked on the evening of the Woolwich murder. A mosque in Bletchley, Milton Keynes and Grimsby Islamic Cultural Centre was fire bombed within days of the of the Woolwich incident. Al Rahma Islamic Centre in Muswell Hill, North London was torched to the ground with “EDL” painted on its walls. Darul Uloom in Chislehurst, Greater London was also set on fire weeks after the Woolwich attack.
A Muslim cemetery was desecrated with Islamophobic graffiti in Newport, Wales in June and an Islamic centre in Kirkcaldy, Scotland was also vandalised the night before the start of Ramadan.
A bomb was left at Aisha Mosque in Walsall on June 21 and at Kanz ul-Iman Jamia Mosque in Tipton on July 12 just after jummah prayers. Wolverhampton Central Mosque was also evacuated on July 18 after an explosive device was discovered next to the building.
Pavlo Lapshyn, 25, appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court on July 23 accused of stabbing Mohammed Saleem, 82, to death in Small Heath, Birmingham and preparing terrorism acts against three mosques in the West Midlands.
Ex Navy serviceman, Mark Carr from Chesterfield was ordered to pay £1,000 in compensation on July 25 for abusing two Muslim women with an array of Islamophobic abuse and obscenities during an incident where the comment “go back to your own country” was overheard by pedestrians.
