“No arrests have been made at this time, and enquiries are ongoing”
Graffiti on the walls of Manchester Islamic Centre
Police have been called to a Mosque in Manchester after vile graffiti was daubed on the walls outside in the early hours of this morning (April 23).
Emergency services attended the Manchester Islamic Centre, on Sydney Street, at around 1.35am. Officers from Greater Manchester Police have now launched an investigation into the incident.
Words had been sprayed in black along an outside wall of the building. As of yet, no arrests have been made.
Manchester Islamic Centre has been the subject of attacks and protests in the past. Campaigners allege the centre has links to the heavily-criticised Iranian regime, although staff deny this.
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An imam of the centre Seyed Avaei told the Manchester Evening News they do not ‘interfere in political issues’. He added that the mosque had no links to the Iranian government.
In 2023, activists staged a sit-in, which started on December 6. They described it as the ‘next step’ after a petition for the closure of the centre reached over 35,000 signatures with no response from government officials or bosses at the centre.
Following the graffiti incident in the early hours of Thursday, a spokesperson for GMP said: “Officers were called to an address on Sydney Street, Manchester at around 1.35am this morning following reports of criminal damage.
“No arrests have been made at this time, and enquiries are ongoing.”