Workmen building a mosque in Chantilly had just erected its minaret when vandals came at night and smashed every one of its tulip-shaped picture windows. The incident raised alarms in the area’s Muslim community. But the attack brought an unexpected outpouring of sympathy from across the area’s religious and political spectrum.

From left: Usman Ghumman, Tarek Hasan and Shahid Malik inspect part of the damage to the Mubarak Mosque in Chantilly on Feb. 17, 2012. The men said the mosque had thousands of dollars in damage done to its large windows, which will delay its opening. Currently, the Muslim congregation that will pray at the yet-unfinished Mubarak Mosque prays at a community center in Herndon. Tracy A. Woodward/The Washington Post