Tuesday, February 21, 2006

WOMAN LEAVES DEATH THREAT IN MOSQUE, OFFICIAL SAYS - TOPKelly Rush, Daily Bulletin, 2/21/06http://dailybulletin.com/news/ci_3529795POMONA - A Christian woman has been accused of walking into a mosque and leaving a written death threat, decorated with drawings of the Christian cross and signed with her name and thumbprint, on the mosque's pulpit.After placing the note on the pulpit, the Christian woman, who was not named, walked back through the mosque, turned to a female parishioner and said, "You see this face? Remember this face. I'll be back," said Radwan Hafuda, vice president of the Islamic Center of Claremont in Pomona.Hafuda said the Feb. 3 incident was recorded by a security camera inside the mosque.The threat, which read "We will kill every last one of you; we are at war," recently was made public by the Southern California office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.Cathy Viray, spokeswoman for the FBI, said the agency was looking into the matter, but declined to comment further.Hafuda said the threat has shaken parishioners. Mosque leaders now are considering adding security features, including a guard and more cameras. Local police have added patrols around the center as well, he said.Hafuda said the woman is not a member of the mosque, and church members do not recall ever seeing her before.It is unclear whether the woman acted alone or whether she is affiliated with any groups, religious or otherwise.Pomona police and Los Angeles County Sheriff's officials could not confirm whether the woman has been arrested.Muslim leaders said the Pomona incident is the latest in a string of recent vandalisms and possible bias-related attacks at mosques throughout the nation.In December, a pipe bomb detonated at an Ohio mosque, causing major damage to the front door and windows, said Ra'id Faraj, spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Incidents also were reported at mosques in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Florida, Texas, Nebraska and New York, the organization reported."The community doesn't take it lightly," Faraj said. "Every now and then there has been an incident, depending on the atmosphere (toward Muslims) around the world. But definitely, this is not the norm. The majority of American Islamic centers are welcomed in the communities." (MORE)

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