Egypt’s Azhar condemns London mosque attack

CAIRO — Egypt’s Al-Azhar institution, a leading authority of Sunni Islam, condemns Monday’s “sinful” terror attack near a London mosque and urges Western countries to take steps against Islamophobia.

“Al-Azhar affirms its total rejection of this terrorist, racist, sinful act, calling on Western countries to take all precautionary measures to limit the phenomenon of Islamophobia,” it says in a statement.

A 48-year-old driver plowed a van into a crowd of Muslims near Finsbury Park Mosque in north London, leaving one person dead and injuring 10 others.

The mosque says the van “deliberately mowed down Muslim men and women leaving late evening prayers,” before being detained by onlookers and later handed over to police.

Others linked the attack to an increase in anti-Muslim hate crimes, particularly since the London Bridge rampage on June 3 that left eight people dead that was claimed by the Islamic State jihadist group.

— AFP