FOLLOWING the two Islamophobic incidents on Thursday night at the Surrey Mosque and the Langley Islamic Centre, Cloverdale-Langley City MP John Aldag on Friday condemned the harassment.

In a stsement, Aldag said: “I am gravely concerned about two incidents that took place outside local mosques last night during Ramadan. One was at the Langley Islamic Centre where a woman was harassed after nightly prayers. The second was at the Surrey mosque where a group had a substance thrown at them and were harassed with a vehicle after nightly prayers.
“Local law enforcement needs to investigate these matters. There is an unfortunate history of Islamophobia in Canada, including the terrorist attack in London. We must stand up against all forms of Islamophobia and prosecute those who commit hate crimes. This is particularly the case after the second incident mimicked the London terrorist attack by intimidating worshippers with a vehicle.
“I was re-elected, in part, because some of my constituents felt unsafe and unwelcome in their own community. I will continue to work with local religious leaders and all levels of government to ensure they have sufficient protections against such hate and there are sufficient punishments for those whose commit hateful acts. I am loudly supportive of all constituents, specifically our Muslim community. They are welcome and deserve to be safe in their own community.
“I visited the Langley Islamic Centre to speak with religious leaders after these incidents. I am going to follow-up with local law enforcement to ensure the proper measures are being taken to find this individual and ensure protection for the Muslim community in Cloverdale—Langley City.”