West Midlands Police have launched an investigation after a Muslim mother had water thrown at her and punched in the face in an alleged racist attack in Birmingham.
The victim, who was sat in her car with her two children, was waiting for traffic lights to change when she was approached by the man in Lozells.
West Midlands Police said the woman was then “racially abused” through the open window before the perpetrator chucked water on her and punched her in the face during the “horrific attack” at 2.30pm on Sunday.
The police said they are treating the incident as a “hate crime” and are appealing for witnesses to contact them.
A West Midlands Police spokeswoman told the Birmingham Mail: “The incident, which has been recorded as a hate crime, took place at 2.30pm Sunday 11 June in Heathfield Road, Lozells.
“The 31-year-old year old woman had stopped at traffic lights, and had her windows open, when she was approached by a man who threw water at her.
“The man then racially abused her, before punching her in the face.
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“The man, described as being black and wearing a hoodie, then walked off. Police enquiries are on-going to identify the man and anyone who saw the incident should call officers.”
Labour Councillor Waseem Zaffar for Lozells and East Handsworth visited the mother after the attack and said she was in a “state of shock”.
He told the Birmingham Mail: “It’s a horrific attack. It happened in front of her two young children.
“She is a Muslim. It was an Islamophobic attack.
“The perpetrator needs to be brought to justice. This is hopefully an isolated incident and the actions of this one individual should not be reflective of any community. People need to be vigilant and report all kinds of hate crime.”
Superintendent Mat Shaer from West Midlands Police said: “We will not tolerate any report of hate crime, these crimes are committed by a small minority of people and are not representative of wider communities.
“There can never be any excuse for hate crime and I would encourage anyone who is a victim of hate to report it to police on 101 or online at: www.report-it.org.uk. Clearly 999 should be used if a crime is in progress or offenders are at the scene.”
