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The National Council of Canadian Muslims is calling on police services in Ottawa and Toronto to swiftly bring those targeting Muslims and their institutions to justice.

The Ottawa Muslim Association’s central mosque and the Islam Care Centre had several windows broken last week. A 27-year-old man was charged with two counts of mischief relating to religious property and one count of assaulting a police officer.

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On Wednesday night, the centre was targeted again when someone left a hateful note and set fire to the building. The incident is being investigated and there are concerns that the perpetrator may be linked to a white supremacist group.

“The fire could have destroyed the food and clothing that we collect to distribute to the homeless and to the needy,” says Omar Mahfoudhi, executive director of the Islam Care Centre, in an NCCM release. “It’s troubling that anyone would try to hurt our communities in this way, impacting not just Ottawa Muslim communities, but the most vulnerable people that we serve across the city.”