Miqdaad Versi Interview

Guardian, ‘The Tories are institutionally Islamophobic’: Miqdaad Versi takes on MPs and the media interview/opinion: "The 33-year-old Versi is a privately educated Londoner who graduated in maths from Oxford university. He is handsome and smiley and could pass for a dishevelled Louis Theroux. He talks fast, constantly gesturing with his hands and nodding. But his arguments are always fair, balanced and evidence-based. Versi is famously polite and relentlessly reasonable. Over the past three years he has become a brilliantly effective media whisperer – cajoling rather than bullying newspapers and broadcasters into seeing the error of their ways."

Birmingham Mosques Vandalised

Mirror, Birmingham mosque attacks: Five holy buildings vandalised 'with sledgehammers' "The terrified Birmingham Muslim community is linking sledgehammer attacks on five mosques around the city overnight to the deadly New Zealand terror massacres."

'Young British Muslims are demanding the government tackles Islamophobia now'

Dazed, Young British Muslims are demanding the government tackles Islamophobia now "Political and faith leaders gathered in solidarity on Monday (March 18) in London’s Regent’s Park mosque to discuss the reality of Islamophobia in the UK. London mayor Sadiq Khan joined the panel with home secretary Sajid Javid, communities secretary James Brokenshire, the archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, and chief rabbi Ephraim Mirvis."

Message of Support

Video from the Naz Legacy Foundation.

Cambridge Mosque

Guardian, Inside Cambridge’s new £23m mosque: a forest runs through it  "The new £23m mosque in Mill Road, Cambridge, which will open in the next few weeks, is the most determined attempt yet to build in a way that is of its own place and time. It’s the brainchild of Timothy Winter, also known as Abdal Hakim Murad, a convert to Islam who teaches at the University of Cambridge and is dean of the Cambridge Muslim College. The building, which has room for 1,000 worshippers, will serve the city’s Muslim population in general, as well as Winter’s students. " The project has used social media to publicise its building/funding. Details are here: Cambridge Mosque Project (Twitter). Cambridge Mosque Information . Cambridge Mosque Trust (website).

Surrey attack

Telegraph, Surrey teenager stabbed in 'far-Right terror attack' amid spate of racist incidents after New Zealand massacre, 18 Mar 2019 "Detectives are investigating an alleged far-Right terror attack in Surrey after a teenager was stabbed amid a spate of racist incidents across Britain which came in the wake of the New Zealand massacre."

Mosque Security

Guardian, UK Muslim leaders seek funding for mosque security, 18 Mar 2019 "Harun Khan, the secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, will be writing to the prime minister raising the “palpable sense of fear” felt by Muslim communities after the attack in Christchurch which claimed 50 lives, and warning of the risk of copycat attacks in the UK."

Christchurch attacks

Full coverage of the Christchurch attacks can be found on my Virtually Islamic blog

'Islamophobia' and the Conservative Party

BBC News, Theresa May's 'head in sand' over Tory Islamophobia, says Warsi, 5 Mar 2019 "Former party chair Baroness Warsi said the PM had failed to "acknowledge" or "tackle" the problem and this was "symptomatic" of her wider leadership." Also see

The Guardian, Tories suspend 14 members over alleged Islamophobia, 5 Mar 2019 "The party was responding to racist and abusive remarks that were discovered and collected online by the @matesjacob Twitter account, and made by people who had said or indicated they were members of the party." 

Syrian schoolboy sues Tommy Robinson

Metro, Syrian schoolboy sues Tommy Robinson for saying he ‘violently attacked’ English girls, 4 Mar 2019

"A Syrian refugee who was allegedly waterboarded by bullies at his former school is suing former English Defence League leader, Tommy Robinson, over videos in which he claimed the boy had attacked English girls."