Today marks one year since the Finsbury Park terrorist attack occurred, in which a van drove into a crowd of worshippers leaving night prayers at the Muslim Welfare House and Finsbury Mosque during Ramadan. This atrocious attack resulted in the tragic death of Makram Ali and the injury of nine others.

A minute silence was observed in Islington earlier today where Mr Ali’s daughter, Ruzina Akhtar, spoke on the hurt they have dealt with. She said: “Our father, like all victims of terrorism, was entirely innocent; which makes his death in this violent way all the more hurtful.”

Although it’s been a year and the community has united and stood together, immediately after the attack and over the past year some victims admit to being afraid and wary when attending their mosque. Mr Ibrahim, a brother of one of the victims, shared today how his brother has been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder because of the attack and the debilitating effect it has had on his personality.

Members from both the Conservative and Labour parties attended the minute silence. Prime Minister Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn were also present to speak and share their thoughts.

The Muslim Association of Britain finds it reassuring to see the solidarity, support and unity being shown to those affected by the terror attack.

Speaking on behalf of MAB, Mustafa Al-Dabbagh said, “We hope this translates into more than words, and the government can work with the Muslim community to make them feel safe. We also hope they can tackle the underlying issue of Islamophobia and implement appropriate measures to prevent such atrocious attacks from taking place again.”

Muslim Association of Britain

19th June 2018