Noor Islamic Cultural Center sent an email to members late Friday to inform them that an anonymous caller had threatened the center at about noon that day. Noor officials notified Hilliard police, the FBI and the Joint Terrorism Task Force.
“We will be working with these entities to make sure our community is safe,” the email said, asking members to call 911 or local police if they see anything unusual or suspicious. “We are also requesting community to be aware of their surroundings these days with the incidents happening around the world.”
Hilliard police said the caller had a California area code. Officers have provided extra patrol and will begin special duty assignments at the mosque. The issue remains under investigation. Today, the Ohio chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations issued a news release calling on law enforcement authorities to investigate a phone threat to destroy a central Ohio mosque, calling it a possible hate crime.
“Given the heightened tensions following the recent terror attack in France, we urge state and federal law enforcement authorities to make all efforts to investigate this threat to a house of worship and to bring the perpetrator to justice,” CAIR-Ohio staff attorney Romin Iqbal said in the release.
It did not specify the mosque involved, and neither Iqbal nor a Noor spokesman were available this morning. The release says a hate call was made to another mosque in Cincinnati and that the CAIR national office has seen a spike in hate messages, many referring to Wednesday’s Charlie Hebdo massacre.
Al-Qaida’s branch in Yemen said it directed the attack in response to the newspaper’s cartoons mocking Islam and its prophet Mohammed. Many other Muslim groups around the world condemned the slayings.
Authorities have said two brothers carried out the rampage, which was the start of three days of violence that claimed five more victims — a policewoman and four hostages at a kosher market. French security forces killed the brothers and a third gunman in Friday raids at the market and at a printing plant.
The Columbus Dispatch