Ahmet Gurhan Kartal
LONDON: British counter-terrorism police have launched a probe into a hate letter calling for acts of violence against Muslims.
The letter, announcing a so-called “Punish a Muslim Day” on April 3, calls on people to attacks Muslims in the form of verbal abuse, removing a woman’s hijab or headscarf, physical assault, or using acid on them.
The counter-terrorism police said it has received reports of “potentially malicious communications sent to individuals across the U.K.”
“Counter-Terrorism Police North East are coordinating the investigation at this time and will consider any potential links to existing inquiries,” a police spokesperson said.
The Met Police confirmed on Saturday that it is investigating the letter, adding that no one has been arrested over the controversy.
“Police are investigating a report of malicious communications in a letter having been sent to the occupants of a residential address in east London,” a spokesperson said. “A further report has been received from a member of the public in the SW4 area who received a copy of a letter through WhatsApp.”
“If anyone believes they have been a victim of such an offence we would encourage them to report it to police so it can be fully investigated,” the statement said. The letter was posted to more than 10 people over the weekend, and it has been also circulating on messaging service WhatsApp as well as social media platforms.
The letter shows a scale of “points” based on the action taken against Muslims.
“There will be rewards based on action taken,” the letter says.
The hate letter urges terrorist acts to “butcher a Muslim using gun, knife, vehicle or otherwise,” and “burn or bomb a mosque.”
Tell MAMA, a group tracking anti-Muslim hate crime in the U.K. said it “has been sent several reports from Muslims in London, the Midlands, and Yorkshire who have sent the ‘Punish a Muslim Day’ letter.”
“This has caused quite a lot of fear within the community,” said Iman Atta, director of Tell MAMA. “They are asking if they are safe, if their children are safe to play outdoors. We have told them to keep calm, and to phone the police if they receive one of these letters.” (AA)
