The firebombed car outside the college and mosque in Perth last night. Source: FacebookWestern Australian police are looking for three people seen running away from a mosque in the Perth suburb of Thornlie last night after a car was firebombed and anti-Muslim graffiti was scrawled on the walls outside.
No one was injured in the attack on the Thornlie mosque and college, where hundreds of worshippers were inside at evening prayers at the time.
Emergency services found a Toyota Prado ablaze from a suspected petrol bomb on Tonbridge Way and the fire spread to several other cars before it was extinguished.
The Prado was completely gutted by the fire. Anti-Islamic graffiti was spray painted on a wall outside the college, near the damaged vehicles.
NOT #Terrorism if it is AGAINST #Muslims only if it's BY MUSLIMS! #Thornlie #Mosque pic.twitter.com/ZiKnZNv96Z #PerthCarBomb #AUsvotes #racism
— BonyRabbit (@bony_rabbit) June 29, 2016
Police say three people were seen running down an alleyway next to the college towards Spencer Road and they would like to speak to anyone who was in the vicinity at the time.
Yahya Adel Ibrahim from the Australian Islamic College said on Facebook that everyone stayed to finish their prayers.
“Thankfully our community won’t start hating and playing blame games and singling out groups of people in our society,” he wrote.
Ibrahim said people stayed “refusing to give into the terror that had just occurred”.
“This, undoubtedly is a criminal act of hate, but it is the act of a person or group not the greater whole,” he said
Police said anyone with any information should call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000, or report the information online.
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