Bishop condemns 'shocking and worrying' attack on Limerick mosque

Bishop Brendan Leahy said such an attack 'is uncommon and not supported by the vast majority of people in Limerick'. FIle picture: Sean Curtin

The Bishop of Limerick has described an arson attack on the Islamic Cultural Centre in Co Limerick as “shocking and worrying”.

Gardaí are investigating after a bathroom in the centre based in Dooradoyle was set on fire on Thursday morning after a man threw a petrol bomb through a window.

No one was injured in the blaze but a person in the mosque was there at the time and rang the emergency services.

In a statement on Friday, Bishop Brendan Leahy said such an attack "is uncommon and not supported by the vast majority of people in Limerick".

He said the incident was a "wake up call to us all" to work on the "promotion of good relations in our community and peace building in a world that is increasingly fractured and polarised".

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People want their homes and places of worship to be respected, he said adding nobody "would want to be the subject of racial or other forms of hatred".

"We would want to live in peace," he said. 

"I would like to express the solidarity of Catholics with the Muslim community in Limerick," he added.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner, local Fianna Fáil councillor Abul Kalam Azad Talukder said gardaí and the fire brigade responded quickly and no one was hurt.

“This mosque is one of the oldest in the country and this has never happened before,” he said. 

People are obviously very shocked and upset, but we have to remember this is one person, and it does not reflect our community.

“The Muslim man who was inside at the time, he was very lucky and was not injured but he acted quickly and we believe it was an isolated incident.

“The mosque remains open, but people feel insecure naturally, and I have explained to them not to panic, we know it is a very serious issue, but we believe it was one person only and not the community around us.

“We have had huge support since this happened, and I want to say Ireland has long been a country that is full of good responses and religious freedom, and we look forward to working together to continue to hold up those values."