Dutch mosques shut doors at prayers after Canada attack

Four of the largest mosques in The Netherlands say they will shut their doors during major prayer meetings after six people were killed in attack on a Canadian mosque.

The Blue Mosque in Amsterdam, The Hague’s as-Sunnah Mosque, Rotterdam’s Essalam Mosque and the Omar Al Farouq Mosque in Utrecht say in a statement “we feel compelled to close mosque doors during prayers.”

Additional safety cameras have also been set up at the Blue Mosque, situated in the southwestern suburbs of the Dutch capital.

Several thousand people attend prayers at the four mosques daily.

“Merciless acts such as in Quebec contribute to the growing global hatred of Muslims,” Said Bouharrou of the Dutch Moroccan Council of Mosques (RMMN) says. “A mosque is an open building that should be accessible at any time of day to all people looking for peace and calm.”

“But we have to be alert against these terror attacks. It’s disappointing that these stringent safety measures should be put in place,” Bouharrou says, adding mosque leaders were in close contact with the Dutch National Coordinator for Security and Counterterrorism (NCTV).

— AFP