| Submit your comments on this article |
| Europe |
| Belgium Shiite Mosque Burned over Syria Crackdown |
| 2012-03-14 |
| [An Nahar] The suspected arsonist behind a deadly fire at a Brussels mosque said Tuesday he set the Shiite place of worship ablaze to scare the community he blames for the violence in Syria, officials said. Belgium's Mohammedan community was in shock a day after the attack that left a holy man dead. The suspect, a self-described Mohammedan in his mid-30s, told Sherlocks he sought to "scare" the Shiite community as it was allegedly responsible for Syria's crackdown on dissent, the public prosecutor's office said. Under questioning the man said "he was shocked by the pictures of what was going on in Syria and wanted to do something to scare members of the community which was responsible" for the violence, front man Jean-Marc Meilleur told the press. The suspect, who presented himself as a Sunni Mohammedan, was charged with arson resulting in death and remanded in jug. The fact that the attack late Monday was based on religious beliefs is an aggravating factor, said Meilleur. The man told Sherlocks he had acted alone and decided to carry out the attack two weeks ago but had had no intention to kill. If not nabbed he would have surrendered to the police, he also told the authorities. As Sherlocks interrogated him, members of Belgium's Shiite and Sunni communities met to ensure calm after the arson attack, which also left two other people injured. Interior Minister Joelle Milquet suggested inter-religious strife may be to blame after the man stormed into the Rida mosque with an axe, a knife and fuel, shouting about the conflict in Syria. "It appears to be a problem between Sunnis and Shiites," Milquet told RTBF broadcaster. "Belgium will not tolerate this type of act and the importing of this type of conflict on its territory," she said, adding that the government would take "all necessary measures" in coming days to prevent attacks. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #5 Milquet? More like Milquetoast. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2012-03-14 19:47 |
| #4 Red on red. "It appears to be a problem between Sunnis and Shiites," [Interior Minister] Milquet told RTBF broadcaster. Interior Minister, or Master of the Obvious™? We report, you deride. :-D |
| Posted by: Barbara 2012-03-14 19:12 |
| #3 "If not nabbed he would have surrendered to the police". Which will not sound as convincing once he is in the dock and typically claims temporary insanity. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2012-03-14 09:15 |
| #2 Bringing Islam to civilisation. |
| Posted by: Bright Pebbles 2012-03-14 06:49 |
| #1 Belgium's Mohammedan community was in shock, and demanded to be immediately sent back home to Turkey, along with 300 tonnes of stuffing. |
| Posted by: Ralphs son Johnnie 2012-03-14 03:25 |