Finsbury Park attacker ‘failed to divide us’: Hero imam hails community spirit a year after fatal assault

Victim’s daughter Ruzina Akhtar addresses the crowd
Nigel Howard
Isobel Frodsham7 June 2018

An imam hailed a hero after the Finsbury Park attack said far-Right terrorist Darren Osborne had “failed epically” in his bid to divide communities.

Hundreds of people gathered in north London last night for a street party celebrating “community spirit” following last year’s attack.

Makram Ali, 51, was killed and 12 others were injured when Osborne, 48, drove a hired van into a crowd of Muslims near a mosque on June 19.

Last night residents of all faiths and backgrounds listened to speeches from politicians and leaders of religious groups before taking part in iftar, the breaking of the fast during Ramadan.

Jeremy Corbyn eats an iftar sunset meal
PA

Mohamed Mahmoud, the imam of the Muslim Welfare House, told the crowd: “It was an attack against those who cherish and value the right to practise their religion freely and openly.

“He wished to create a rift and a divide between communities. To tear us apart. And he failed epically.”

Mr Mahmoud was declared a hero following the attack after shielding Osborne from the crowd before the police arrived.

Other speakers included Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and Conservative MPs Dominic Grieve and Anna Soubry, who talked of the strength of Britain’s Muslim communities.

The event was organised by charity Muslim Aid with the Muslim Welfare House and Finsbury Park mosque.

Ruzina Akhtar, one of Mr Ali’s six children, also addressed the crowd.

With her voice breaking, she said: “Although last year was a very tragic event for our family that took our beloved father from us, we would like to remember the positives that came out from those days — with the community showing the love and support.

“We’re very happy to be a part of this community and to be in this country with such a loving, diverse community around us.”

Mr Corbyn, the area’s MP, called the attack a “murder on the streets of our community” but said the street party was evidence that “we will not be divided”. He told the crowd: “Our response was to come together as a community, to come together of all the faiths, and come together and show we will not be divided, we will not be defeated, the racists will never win, we will never allow them to win.”

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