Police investigate comments targeting Sydney’s Lakemba Mosque

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Police have revealed they're investigating a second potential online threat towards mosques this week in southwest Sydney.  On Thursday, Lakemba Mosque posted on Facebook that it had received a comment on its TikTok account that referenced the 2019 Christchurch massacre.  And this morning police said another mosque in neighbouring Padstow has also been threatened.

Transcript

00:00Well, Dan, it's clearly a developing situation.

00:05Let's just start with the Lakemba mosque incident.

00:07So it was on Wednesday that at least one comment was made on TikTok, potentially a second comment

00:12also invoking the Christchurch massacre.

00:15Now that is under an urgent investigation by police.

00:19But what we've since learned is that as police commence these inquiries, a separate incident

00:25again involving a potential online threat with again an apparent reference to the Christchurch

00:31massacre targeting this time the Padstow Mosque.

00:34Here's Assistant Commissioner Brian McFadden.

00:37Well, during the course of the investigation into the Lakemba mosque, we've actually identified

00:41a second threat that's come into the neighbouring Padstow mosque.

00:45So our team out at the Camp C police area command are working with our engagement hate

00:50crime unit, the counterterrorism command, and the investigation is ongoing as we speak.

00:56And you've been at Lakemba mosque.

00:58How are people in the community they're feeling?

01:01Well, Dan, there's a real sense of fear in some instances.

01:06People talk about the noted rise in Islamophobia.

01:09We know there's research that's been produced just this month noting hundreds of percent

01:13increase in the rise in Islamophobia since the war between Israel and Hamas began.

01:20And indeed that there are many instances where people are experiencing Islamophobia and not

01:25reporting it because it is something that some people in the community say has become

01:29so frequent and so regular.

01:31However, it's also worth noting that pre-dawn prayers here Fajr at Lakemba mosque was incredibly

01:37well attended.

01:38Hundreds of people came out during Ramadan for this event and they also spoke about the

01:43need to remain resolute in their faith.

01:47It's just a shame in this day and age that we can't get rid of it.

01:51There's good and bad people everywhere.

01:53You've just got to look on the bright side and we've all just got to stay strong and

01:59stay together.

02:00These threats, they make some fear in the community because this is no good this much.

02:06We all live together here, all Lakemba nights going on the Ramadan, we pray together, everything.

02:12We fast, but this threat's no good.

02:15They have to look out for this one.

02:17So that's just a couple of people among the many hundreds that have come to the Lakemba

02:21mosque this morning to pray and there'll be more prayers throughout the day, both at midday

02:25as well, of course, into some special prayers that take place every night during Ramadan

02:30as well.

02:31In particular, Dan, just worth focusing on these police investigations once more.

02:34These are ongoing matters into these two potential online incidents at both now Lakemba mosque

02:40and neighbouring Padstow mosque.

02:41No arrests or charges as yet, but they do bear some similarity to an alleged incident

02:47earlier this month at the Masjid al-Bayt al-Islami site in Edmondson Park, also in

02:52Western Sydney, a mosque there where there was an alleged online comment made by a teenager

02:57in Western Australia who's been charged over that incident over allegedly invoking again

03:02the Christchurch massacre in relation to the mosque.

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