Australian police have launched an investigation after three\nthreatening letters were sent to Lakemba Mosque, the country\u2019s largest\nmosque, just hours before the start of the holy month of Ramadan.<\/p>\n
The letters sent to Lakemba Mosque contained hand-drawn images of\npigs and threats to kill \u201cthe Muslim race,\u201d according to local\ntelevision station ABC News. The letters also included references to the\nman who carried out the Christchurch massacre.<\/p>\n
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon\nconfirmed he had seen the letters. \u201cWe have received them and are\ninvestigating,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Police said the letters had been seized for forensic examination and\nthat patrols around places of worship, including Lakemba Mosque, as well\nas community events, would continue.<\/p>\n
Two previous letters sent to the mosque in recent weeks included one\ndepicting the building engulfed in flames.<\/p>\n
Community leaders said the latest development had left the community\nfeeling uneasy, as several thousand worshippers attend prayers at the\nmosque during Ramadan.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have received so many enquiries about whether it is safe to go\nand pray,\u201d said Gamel Kheir, secretary of the Lebanese Muslim\nAssociation, which manages the mosque, speaking to ABC News. \u201cThat is\nnot a question any Australian should have to ask.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lakemba Mosque is expected to accommodate approximately 5,000\nworshippers each evening during Ramadan. According to the Australian\nBureau of Statistics, more than 60 per cent of residents in the Lakemba\nsuburb identify as Muslim.<\/p>\n
The incident comes amid broader concerns about rising racism and\nIslamophobia in Australia. A national study released earlier this month\nfound that nearly 79 per cent of university staff and students had\nexperienced racism on campus.<\/p>\n
Community leaders said threats against the mosque could not be viewed\nin isolation. Tensions have remained high since the deadly attack at\nBondi Beach late last year.<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the threats, calling them\n\u201coutrageous.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is outrageous that people who are simply practising their faith,\nparticularly during the holy month of Ramadan for Muslims, are being\ntargeted with this kind of intimidation,\u201d he told ABC Radio, urging a\nreduction in heated political rhetoric.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/australias-largest-mosque-receives-kill-muslims-threat-letters-ahead-of-ramadan-1771647181", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }