Vandals scrawl swear word on Portsmouth mosque wall

Vandals daubed offensive graffiti on a mosque in the city. People have reacted with shock and upset after a vulgar term was written in thin purple letters on a white wall on the outside of the Jami Mosque in Southsea.

The Victoria Road North place of worship was previously vandalised in 2010 when someone painted a large red poppy on a wall outside. More recently members of the English Defence League have protested outside the mosque.

The latest act of vandalism comes just weeks after the exterior of the mosque had been refurbished.

Muhammed Badruzzaman lives nearby and is a worshipper at the mosque. He said he was shocked and upset to find the damage. Mr Badruzzaman said: “I cannot believe it. This must have happened just now because we have been here all day. We are going to have to complain to this police now, this is disgusting.”

As reported, men from the city who worshipped at the mosque had left the country to fight in Syria. The news later sparked an EDL protest, with counter-demonstrators confronting them.

Portsmouth News, 18 November 2014