AA / Berlin / Ayhan Şimşek
German police evacuated a mosque in the northwestern city of Duisburg and conducted a search following an emailed bomb threat.
The mosque in the Marxloh district, managed by the Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs – DITIB –, received the threatening email during the night from Thursday to Friday, prompting the police to intervene early Friday morning, they said. authorities said.
Police cordoned off the area around the mosque and conducted a thorough search inside the building. No explosive device was found and the alert was lifted a few hours later. Friday prayers, which normally take place around 1 p.m., had to be canceled.
The Marxloh Central Mosque, the largest Islamic place of worship in Duisburg, is frequented by a large Turkish-German community in the industrial Ruhr region.
Germany has seen a rise in Islamophobic racism and violence in recent years, driven by far-right political parties and movements, including the opposition Alternative for Germany, or AfD, party.
-Dozens of German mosques have been the subject of threats and violence in recent months, with some being targeted by vandalism and attempted arson. Local Muslim organizations have called for increased police protection and measures against hate crimes targeting religious institutions.
Germany, which has nearly 84 million inhabitants, is, after France, the country in Western Europe with the largest Muslim population. Official figures indicate that the country has nearly 5.6 million Muslims.
*Translated from English by Mourad Belhaj
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