Key Points

The suspected arson comes during a tense and politically charged summer in the UK, marked by a rise in both Islamophobic and antisemitic incidents. It follows just days after a deadly attack outside a synagogue in Manchester, where two Jewish worshippers were killed in a car ramming and stabbing attack on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in Judaism.

Emergency services were called to the scene shortly before 10 pm after flames broke out at the entrance of the small mosque, which has been serving a local group of 10 to 15 worshippers for the past four years.

According to a volunteer mosque manager, confirmed, two masked individuals were seen on security footage arriving at the mosque wearing balaclavas. They attempted to force the main door open before pouring gasoline across the steps and setting it alight.

Inside the mosque at the time were the mosque's chairman and another volunteer, both in their 60s, who had stayed behind after evening prayers to share a cup of tea, as per CNN.

"They heard a loud bang outside and fled the building as flames curled across the main entrance," the manager said. "They could have easily died. These people came with full intent to cause maximum damage."

"The chairman was shaking the whole time," the manager added. "A neighbour came out onto the street crying. Everyone is scared. If someone was willing to do this, we don't know what's next."

"Then we saw them pouring gasoline all over the floor and the door of the mosque and the chairman's car outside," the manager affirmed.

Police said the fire damaged the front of the mosque and a vehicle parked outside.

The mosque's chairman works as a taxi driver and relies on the car as his livelihood, according to the manager. "Unfortunately, just a shell of his vehicle is left," he added.

Nobody was physically harmed during the fire, but police said its impact will "be felt by the Muslim community" of the small coastal town.

The manager also highlighted that this isn't the first time the building has been targeted. "Last August, the mosque was targeted twice overnight with eggs thrown at the building, and people have shouted curse words and racial slurs when passing by," the manager said.

"But we never expected an attack on this level," he added. "The community right now is on their toes. They feel unsafe, they are paranoid. There is a lot going on right now."

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned that attack and warned that hatred "is rising once again, and Britain must defeat it once again."

- ANI