Unidentified Islamophobic attacker attempts to set fire to Cologne Mosque - police
According to the German authorities, an Islamophobic attacker attempted to carry out an arson attack on Cologne Central Mosque but the awakening of the private security officers to the hate crime incident led the suspect to escape from the complex by leaving half a tin of combustible material and a few lighters behind.
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- Published Date: 04:59 | 19 November 2021
- Modified Date: 07:44 | 19 November 2021
A police report has shown that a failed Islamophobic attack was carried out to set fire to the Cologne Central Mosque, the headquarter of the Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs (DITIB).
According to information released by the Cologne police, a probe was opened into the arson attack on the mosque located in the Ehrenfeld district, and an unidentified cyclist has been being sought.
The private security officers, who awaked to the Islamophobic incident that took place at around 04:00 in the morning, tried to talk to the suspect, but the man escaped from the complex by leaving half a tin of combustible material and a few lighters behind him, the official sources said in a statement.
The background of the anti-Muslim incident is still unclear, the police examined the evidence at the scene, evaluated the security camera footage and obtained information from the witnesses to shed light on the hate crime incident.
Cologne's most prominent mosque, which is run by Turkish-Muslim umbrella organization DITIB, received numerous threat letters in recent years from right-wing extremists and neo-Nazi groups.
According to information released by the Cologne police, a probe was opened into the arson attack on the mosque located in the Ehrenfeld district, and an unidentified cyclist has been being sought.
The private security officers, who awaked to the Islamophobic incident that took place at around 04:00 in the morning, tried to talk to the suspect, but the man escaped from the complex by leaving half a tin of combustible material and a few lighters behind him, the official sources said in a statement.
The background of the anti-Muslim incident is still unclear, the police examined the evidence at the scene, evaluated the security camera footage and obtained information from the witnesses to shed light on the hate crime incident.
Cologne's most prominent mosque, which is run by Turkish-Muslim umbrella organization DITIB, received numerous threat letters in recent years from right-wing extremists and neo-Nazi groups.
A country of over 82 million people, Germany has the second-largest Muslim population in Western Europe after France. Among the country's nearly 5 million Muslims, 3 million are of Turkish origin.
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