Cii Radio| Ayesha Ismail|31 January 2017| 02 Jumadul ula 1438
Social media users express solidarity after attack on a Quebec City mosque leaves six Muslims dead and eight wounded.
Soon after news broke that six Muslims had been killed in a shooting attack at a mosque in Canada’s Quebec City during evening prayers, people of all backgrounds took to social media to express their solidarity.
Gunmen fired on about 50 people inside the Quebec Islamic Cultural Centre on Sunday at 8pm local time (01:00 GMT). At least eight people were also wounded in the incident.
In a series of posts, Twitter users denounced the attack against Muslims and offered condolences to the families of the victims.
Twitter user Gregory Brown described Sunday as a “sad day for Canada & the victims of this hateful act”.
“We must stand against racism and ‘other’ing, especially now,” he said in a post.
Mag Gardner, another Twitter user, urged her fellow citizens to stand together.
Justin Trudeau, Canada’s prime minister, condemned the shooting as a “terrorist attack on Muslims in a centre of worship and refuge”.
“Muslim Canadians are an important part of our national fabric, and these senseless acts have no place in our communities, cities and country,” he said in a statement .
While many in the North American country shared words of strength to each other via social media, others expressed concerns about Islamophobia in the country.
The incident took place a few days after US President Donald Trump barred citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries – Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen – from entering the United States.
Trump’s move led to the detention of incoming refugees at US airports, sparking protests, legal challenges and widespread condemnation from international leaders, rights groups and activists.
And on Twitter, some users said Trump’s executive order – referred to by many on social media as “#MuslimBan” – prompted “xenophobia” beyond US borders.
Twitter users also celebrated the Canadian Muslims in government, posting images and profiles of civil servants.
Source – Al Jazeera
