'It gives me a really uneasy feeling' - Young London Imam condemns 'deeply upsetting' UK riots
A young London Imam has shared his feelings of unease following a week of violent protests across the UK.
The unrest began the night after three young girls were killed in a knife attack at a Taylor Swift-themed holiday club in Southport.
A false rumour that the suspect was a Muslim asylum seeker spread online sparked a series of anti-immigration protests across the country.
On Sunday, crowds in Rotherham targeted a Holiday Inn Express being used to house asylum seekers, chanting “get them out”.
Police have also been told to increase security to keep Muslims safe after mosques in Hartlepool and Southport were targeted.
110 people were arrested in central London last Wednesday, after demonstrators clashed with police officers, at a protest titled “Enough is Enough”.
Adeel Shah, an Imam at the Baitul Futuh mosque in Morden has described the attacks on mosques over the last week as “very upsetting and heartbreaking”.
“It's been quite horrific to see actually. I came to the UK from Pakistan when I was eight months old. The amount of Islamophobic experiences I’ve had I can count on my fingers, they’ve been so few,” the 29-year-old Imam explained.
“But to be going out now and kind of having the sense that you have to watch your back, it's a really uneasy feeling.”
Since becoming an imam in 2019, Adeel has been committed to changing the narrative of how Islam is represented in the media and encouraging people to visit mosques.
But over the last week he has been left bereft by the scenes he has witnessed across the country.
“We had a mosque up in Hartlepool, which was targeted, and last year the same mosque raised £20,000 for British charities,” he told LondonWorld.
“So I think the people causing the unrest, they don’t know what they’re doing. And I think that's where that education element comes in as education breeds tolerance.
“It has been very upsetting, very heartbreaking to see that we live in a country which has so accepting of multiculturalism, which is so appreciative of religious freedom, which is so welcoming for pockets of people to desecrate that.”
Planned riots in four London boroughs
The Met Police is currently investigating reports of far right protests planned in four London boroughs following a list circulating on social media.
MPs for the four boroughs have come out to warn locals of the potential danger the rumoured demonstrations pose on Wednesday night (August 7).
The list mentions Harrow in North West London, Hounslow in West London, Finchley in North London and finally Walthamstow in East London.
A Met Police spokesperson said officers are "aware of the online reports and will assess them".
Walthamstow MP Stella Creasy wrote on X: “Walthamstow I know there is some really worrying stuff being circulated on social media - please be assured getting to the bottom of it is my priority and please wait for further updates.
“Am asking for your help to defeat the fear being stoked together!”
A Harrow council spokesman said: “We are aware of social media posts and WhatsApp messages being shared which claim that a protest is being held in Harrow on Wednesday.
“We are working with the police to verify whether a protest is taking place and if there is we will prioritise the safety of Harrow’s communities in our response.”
Finchley and Golders Green MP Sarah Sackman took to X to slam the "disgusting" protests. She said: "A service helping immigrants in Finchley has been included in a list of targets of far-right groups planning actions this week. This is disgusting.”
Leader of Hounslow Council, Councillor Shantanu Rajawat, said: "We are aware of social media posts and WhatsApp messages which claim a protest is being planned in the borough this week.
“We are working with the police to verify that claim. If there is any credibility to it, we will work with the police and other partners to prioritise the safety of our communities.”
London Mayor Sadiq Khan said: “My thoughts remain with all those affected by the abhorrent attack in Southport last week.
“The rioting and violence we have seen across the country in the last few days has been utterly shocking.
“There is simply no place in our society for the violence, racism and Islamophobia we have witnessed - disorder fuelled by a toxic combination of far-Right agitators and online disinformation.”
Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to “ramp up criminal justice” after an emergency Cobra meeting following the attack on the hotel in Rotherham.
The Prime Minister has called for a “standing army” of specialist police officers to crack down on rioting and for perpetrators to be named and shamed.
In a post on X, Sir Keir wrote: “This is not protest, it is pure violence. We will have a standing army of public duty officers.
“We will ramp up criminal justice. We will apply criminal law online as well as offline. We will not tolerate attacks on mosques or on Muslim communities.”