Irish police are investigating an attack on a mosque in the western city of Galway after rocks smashed the windows during late prayers on Monday, reports said on Tuesday.
Imam Ibrahim Noonan told the Irish Times he believed the attack was a “direct result” of the London terrorist attack on Saturday night.
The attack on the Galway mosque “terrified” up to 100 members of the local Muslim community who were inside at the time, Noonan told the newspaper.
It follows Irish media reports that one of the three London attackers named by British police, Rachid Redouane, had lived in Dublin, the Irish capital, where he married a British woman in 2012 before returning to Britain.
Redouane returned to Ireland for a time in 2016 but had not come to the attention of the police, Irish national broadcaster RTE reported.
Noonan said that cameras at the mosque had filmed those responsible for Monday’s attack.
“I believe that this was a direct backlash on our community as a result of the weekend and I am fearful that more attacks will come which could be worse,” he said.
“I am appealing to the Irish public that what is happening in London and Manchester is sad and tragic and unforgivable, but we cannot just assume that every Muslim and every mosque is involved or supporting these so-called radicals.”
