A mosque was burned down in Britain in a suspected arson attack on Wednesday. Police said they considered the mosque fire suspicious and that the letters "EDL" had been found scrawled on the side of the building. EDL is the acronym of the English Defence League (EDL), a far-right group that has denied any involvement. Chief Superintendent Adrian Usher said, "Exactly when and where that graffiti was placed is a focal point of the inquiry," The Islamic center in north London was mainly used by the local Somali community. Firemen were called to the scene overnight after reports of an explosion. There were no injuries.
Last week a mosque in the northeastern city of Grimsby was assaulted by petrol bombs and similar attacks were reported in the south of England after the murder of Lee Rigby, a serving soldier.
Farooq Murad, secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, said in a statement, "This is the latest in a series of attacks on Muslim institutions since the horrific murder of Drummer Lee Rigby. The British Muslim community came out in droves to condemn this murder, and it is despicable that Muslims should be held to account and suffer in this way."