Chelmsford: Police issue CCTV images of man they want to talk to in connection with mosque attack

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Chelmsford mosque attack suspect2Police would like to speak to the man in this picture about a criminal damage to the main door of Chelmsford mosque, in Moulsham Street.

The incident happened at about 5am on November 24. Members of the mosque attending morning prayers at about 7am found they could not open the main door. They entered through another door and found the lock had been damaged.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Pc Peter Carter, or his colleagues at Chelmsford, on 101. Alternatively, call independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

East Anglian Daily Times, 16 December 2013

Middlesbrough fans in anti-racism march after allegations supporters ripped up Qu’ran during Birmingham match

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Love Boro Hate Racism

Middlesbrough fans staged an anti-racism march after allegations supporters ripped up copies of the Qu’ran during a match against Birmingham City.

Police are investigating claims a minority of away Boro fans ripped up copies of the Qu’ran – the holy text of Islam – during the team’s 2-2 draw at St Andrew’s last week.

Ahead of the home game against Brighton on Saturday, supporters’ group the Red Faction staged an anti-racist protest march to the Riverside Stadium. More than 100 fans took part in the protest, chanting anti-racist songs.

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Mail changes Islamophobic headline as ‘gesture of good will’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

In September the Daily Mail and the Daily Telegraph published disgraceful reports that described a convicted drug dealer and wife beater as a “devout Muslim“.

Ash Choudry of the Building for the Future blog complained to the Press Complaints Commission and last week the PCC published the result of the complaint against the Mail, which turned out to be the usual PCC fudge:

“Although the newspaper did not accept a breach of the Code, the complaint was resolved when the PCC negotiated the removal of the words ‘devout Muslim’ from the online article as a gesture of good will.”

Still, at least the headline has been changed, and credit is due to Building for the Future for pursuing this.

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32 in court to be sentenced over Walsall EDL violence

Posted on by Bob Pitt

EDL Walsall protest (4)Thirty two men will appear in court this week to be sentenced after violence erupted at an English Defence League demonstration in Walsall last year. Over a period of four days the defendants will all appear at Wolverhampton Crown Court for their final hearing, after being convicted of violent disorder earlier this year.

The men were arrested and charged following an investigation by West Midlands Police Force CID following violence in Walsall town centre on September 29, 2012. A series of operations were staged across the country to arrest people suspected of involvement in the disorder, which broke out when members of the protest group tried to break through police lines.

A further 17 men have already appeared before magistrates where they have been sentenced for crimes ranging from public order offences to criminal damage.

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Murfreesboro: Mosque opponents denied court intervention

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Lou Ann Zelenik lambasts Rutherford County officialsMURFREESBORO, Tenn. — A Rutherford County Chancery Court judge has denied a temporary restraining order request by opponents to halt any consideration of a proposed Islamic Center of Murfreesboro cemetery.

Chancellor Robert Corlew III denied issuing a restraining order Wednesday against the Rutherford County Planning Commission to prevent it from considering a proposed cemetery at the mosque, located on Veals Road in Murfreesboro.

In his ruling, Corlew cited the fact that in November the Tennessee Supreme Court denied an appeal and affirmed an appellate ruling, which overturned his decision, in favor of the Planning Commission on the grounds adequate public notice was given prior to approving construction of the mosque in May 2010.

“While the court understands (their) position, it is the duty of this court to recognize that the (Tennessee) Court of Appeals took jurisdiction over all of these matters,” Corlew said, adding a “mandate was issued enforcing the decision of the Court of Appeals.”

“This court no longer has jurisdiction to consider pleadings filed by the plaintiffs,” he said.

The ruling comes as another blow to Islamic Center opponents who have tried in vain to block the construction of the mosque, which opened in August 2012, for more than three years through numerous lawsuits.

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Lies and hysteria over ‘gender segregation’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

UUK protest adWhen Universities UK published its guidelines on External Speakers in Higher Education Institutions last month it can hardly have anticipated the outcry that would result.

The publication’s rather pedantic discussion of the possible legal implications of a hypothetical public meeting where gender separation was requested by a visiting speaker unleashed a wave of outrage, with UUK being angrily denounced for advocating a system of discrimination that was variously compared to the US South in the 50s or South Africa under apartheid (a protest last Tuesday evening outside the UUK headquarters in London “echoed much of what Nelson Mandela fought for”, wrote the Telegraph‘s Emma Pearce).

Education secretary Michael Gove (author of the Islamophobic tract Celcius 7/7) stepped in to accuse UUK of “pandering to extremism”. And by the end of last week media fury had reached such a pitch that the prime minister himself felt it necessary to intervene, with a spokesman stating that David Cameron “doesn’t believe guest speakers should be allowed to address segregated audiences”.

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Thug gets off with suspended sentence for vicious racist attack

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A father-of-three has been spared jail after assaulting a man and his teenage son with a paving slab as they walked to their mosque. Shaun Wilkinson, 25, pleaded guilty to racially aggravated assault after unleashing a barrage of vile racist abuse at the men as they walked down Thompson Street, Preston.

Preston Crown Court heard Wilkinson, of Slaidburn Road, Ribbleton, saw the father and his 14-year-old son approaching and said “watch this” to his girlfriend. As they walked past, Wilkinson punched the father in his face. The son stepped in to try and help his father, grappling Wilkinson to the ground. However, Wilkinson got up and threw a piece of paving stone, hitting the youngster in the forehead.

Rachel Faux, prosecuting, told the court: “(The father) asked what the problem was and received a barrage of verbal abuse. As the father waited for the police to be called there was further abuse from females on the street.” The police arrived and arrested Wilkinson. He continued making racist comments.

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Neo-Nazi party protests Athens mosque construction

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Golden Dawn anti-mosque protestSome 700 members and supporters of Greek neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn protested Saturday against the construction of Athens’ first official mosque, the state-run Athens News Agency reported.

Shouting “Greece belongs to the Greeks” and “No mosque in Athens”, protesters gathered in the Eleonas neighbourhood in central Athens where the mosque will be constructed, according to the agency.

Lawmaker Eleni Zaroulia the wife of Golden Dawn leader Nikos Michaloliakos and three more of the party’s elected deputies reportedly participated in the protest. Michaloliakos is currently in pre-trial detention, charged with running a criminal organisation following a musician’s murder by one of the group’s supporters in September.

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