Worshipers at dawn prayer in a suburb of Toronto on Saturday tackled and subdued a 24-year-old man who allegedly entered the mosque and attacked people with bear spray, the Peel Regional Police said.
The man walked into the Dar al-Tawheed Islamic Centre in Mississauga, Ontario, and allegedly “discharged bear spray toward people in the mosque while brandishing a hatchet just before 7am,” the police said.
Nadia Hasan of the National Council of Canadian Muslims said a group of about 20 men were praying when the man sprayed them.
“Some of the men turned around and they very bravely decided that they were not going to let him attack them,” she said.
“They tackled him to the ground and apprehended him until the police showed up,” she added.
The imam of the mosque, Ibrahim Hindy, praised the courage of the worshipers who subdued the attacker.
“Our community will never be broken and we refuse to be intimidated,” he wrote on Twitter.
Mohammad Moiz Omar of Mississauga has been arrested.
The police said they are considering “all possible motivations for the incident and charges are pending.”
The congregants received minor injuries as a result of the bear spray, they said.
“People are obviously quite shaken up and are recovering,” Hasan said.
“For the most part, folks are still processing what’s happened and are trying to kind of see how they can ensure that their communities remain secure,” he added.
Canadian Prime Minister Justice Trudeau condemned the attack, calling it “incredibly disturbing” in a post on Twitter.
“I strongly condemn this violence — which has no place in Canada — and I’m keeping the community in my thoughts today. I also want to applaud the courage of those who were there this morning,” Trudeau wrote.
“There is no place in our province for such evil and hateful acts. We must ensure those responsible are brought to justice,” Ontario Premier Doug Ford said.
Other public figures joined in the chorus of condemnation, including the mayor of Toronto.
In June in Ontario, a man driving a pick-up truck deliberately ran over a Canadian family of Pakistani origin, killing four people.
Additional reporting by AFP
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