Bacon and ham thrown at Warragul Mosque in suspected Islamophobic attack
A man was filmed throwing bacon and ham at the Warragul Mosque in regional Victoria, an act that community leaders have described as hateful. The incident has left the Muslim community feeling saddened and targeted.
A disturbing incident has left the Muslim community in regional Victoria feeling saddened and targeted. A man was filmed throwing bacon and ham at the Warragul Mosque on Wednesday afternoon, an act that community leaders have described as hateful.
Security footage of the incident shows a man in a grey tracksuit throwing bacon near the entrance of the mosque in Warragul. The incident happened days after a social media influencer posted a video of the mosque, which opened last year.
Incident described as 'hateful'
The Warragul Mosque described the attack as an attempt to "offend, intimidate, and divide". "It will not succeed," it said in a statement.
Mansoor Shamsi, vice president of the Warragul Mosque Committee, said the mosque had been targeted with graffiti and vandalism before. "Unfortunately, [I'm] not shocked or surprised," he said. "We're caught between not wanting to give oxygen to something, which shouldn't get any attention because it comes from a place of ignorance, hate, fear."
"At the same time, we also feel a responsibility to call it out," Mr Shamsi added.
Investigation underway
Victoria Police said it was investigating the incident. Police are urging anyone with information about the incident to contact Crime Stoppers.
Islamophobic attacks on the rise
The president of the Islamic Council of Victoria (ICV), Mohamed Mohideen, said the issue was hurtful to the wider Muslim community and reflected a concern about increasing Islamophobia. "We are not here to take over churches," he said. "We are not here to take over people's faith or undermine other people's faith."
Mr Mohideen said such incidents were trying — and failing — to incite a reaction from the Muslim community. "The community is quite resilient," he said. "The Muslim community have got used to attacks of Islamophobia and anti-Muslim hate."
Social media posts spark outrage
Two days before the September 9 incident at the mosque, a social media influencer posted a video of the Warragul Mosque to his Facebook page. Over the following days, his post attracted hundreds of comments from individuals outraged that the mosque was occupying the former Uniting Church site, even though the church had ceased worshipping there in 2006.
Some comments suggested the site should be vandalised with pork products. The influencer was approached for comment.
The mosque had received "overwhelming" support from the broader community, Mr Shamsi said. "Whenever these things happen, there is an overwhelming amount of support," he said.