Call for Cameras at Every Mosque in France after New Attack
A Muslim leader called Wednesday for surveillance cameras to be installed at every mosque in France following the latest in a series of attacks on Islamic places of worship.
A mosque in Limoges in the center of the country had excrement smeared on its doors overnight in an incident that reflects a growing trend, according to Abdallah Zekri, who chairs an Islamophobia Observatory set up by France's Muslim Council.
"It is time that town councils took this problem seriously and started putting cameras in front of mosques, as is already the case for synagogues," Zekri said.
The Limoges incident followed reports of mob violence in Egypt and Libya involving Islamists angered by a U.S.-made film said to insult the Prophet Mohammed.
There was no immediate indication however that the desecration was linked to unrest over the film.
Local police said the mosque doors had been daubed with neo-Nazi graffiti at the end of July. They also said it was possible the attack was random, as a local restaurant unconnected to the Muslim community was subject to a similar attack earlier this month.
Unlike many mosques in France, the Limoges center is immediately recognizable as an Islamic place of worship because of its minaret.
"This attack is a grave assault on the dignity of Muslims and is shocking for every citizen who upholds the values of respect and tolerance," Interior Minister Manuel Valls said in a statement.
The incident in Limoges came a month after two pig heads were deposited at the entrance of a mosque in Montauban in the south of the country.
France is home to at least four million Muslims and leaders of the largest Islamic community in Europe say incidents of Islamophobia are on the rise against a background of confrontation with the authorities.
Many Muslims have been angered by legislation banning women from wearing full veils and this year's elections were marked by debate over the use of halal methods of animal slaughter.
Source: Agence France Presse
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