An investigation is under way after two “desecrated” copies of the Quran were thrown into the grounds of a mosque in Sheffield.
South Yorkshire Police said Wybourn Islamic Centre on Maltravers Road had reported two hate crimes in the span of several weeks, with the latest incident taking place over the weekend.
CCTV footage showed a person approaching the gates of the centre at about 01:40 GMT on Sunday and placing the prayer book containing “graffitied hateful material” in the grounds of the premise, police said.
Mosque leaders said this had been “the second religiously-aggravated hate incident” which had been “deeply hurtful and distressing to our community”.
Leaders said on one of the pages someone had written “This is a human country. Kill all adult Muslims.”
Mosque leaders urged people to “remain calm, avoid speculation and refrain from sharing unverified information” and to not allow “an individual’s misguided actions to undermine the peace, harmony and mutual respect in a community”.
