Attack on Muslim

A man leaving a mosque in St. Cloud was assaulted in what police described Sunday as a crime motivated by bias.

A man leaving a mosque in St. Cloud was assaulted in what police described Sunday as a crime motivated by bias.

The victim, a 26-year-old man, was approached about 2:15 p.m. outside the mosque, in the 600 block of 7th Avenue S., by a white man, later identified as a 33-year-old Isanti, Minn., resident. The suspect has been arrested and was awaiting charges.

The suspect, police said, accused the victim of being a Muslim terrorist. The suspect then shoved the victim and elbowed him in the head, sending his glasses flying.

When the victim grabbed his cell phone to call 911, the suspect fled and was apprehended about six blocks away, police said.

Police said the suspect also fought with officers at the jail.

Yes, CAIR has responded:

We urge the FBI to determine whether federal civil rights charges may be filed in this case,” said CAIR-MN Communications Director Valerie Shirley. “Federal charges would send a strong message that anti-Muslim bigotry will not be tolerated in our society.”

Shirley also asked for stepped-up police protection for the St. Cloud mosque and called on state religious and political leaders to repudiate the Islamophobic attitudes that can lead to such incidents.