A Muslim graveyard sign was vandalised in Scotland with hate-filled phrases, angering members of the community.
Spotted by a visitor on Tuesday, the graffiti – allegedly by nationalist political party Britain First – was sprayed over the sign at Cathcart Cemetery in Glasgow.
Local resident Amjid Bashir tweeted about the incident, calling it a hate crime.
“Myself and most other people see this as hate crime; it is no different to desecrating graves of the Jewish or Christian Community,” he said.
“There was a big campaign last week about the need to tackle Islamophobia and how much it is affecting every day Muslims, who are really trying to dispel the negativity,” he went on.
Police and East Renfrewshire Council are understood to be aware of the incident.
A spokesperson for the council said: “This is a disgraceful act of vandalism that does not reflect the views of our local community or the wider Scottish community.”
“We have reported this matter to police and our graffiti removal team is on their way to the site,” she said adding that: “East Renfrewshire Council has a zero tolerance policy to any form of hate or racism and would urge local people to contact Police if they have information about this incident.”
Bashir said the problem was on the doorstep and needs to be addressed. “My understanding is that it will be treated as a hate crime [by police]; we are disgusted by it,” he said.
“It’s despicable and it seems as if the people who did this have no regard for the deceased or the fact it’s a very emotional place.”