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Title: Authorities Investigate Shots Fired Near Islamic Center Site (Tenn): Fire at Tenn. Mosque Building Site Ruled Arson (Tenn)
Source:
Daily News Journal
URL Source: http://DNJ.com
Published: Aug 30, 2010
Author: staff writer
Post Date: 2010-08-30 02:28:42 by Murron
Keywords: None
Views: 2600
Comments: 2
Authorities Investigate Shots Fired Near Islamic Center Site Rutherford County Sheriff’s deputies are investigating a complaint about shots being fired near the construction site of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro on Veals Road off Bradyville Pike. A group of congregation members were at the site looking at the damage done to construction equipment over the weekend when they heard nine shots fired from two directions. Around 3:15, they reported hearing six shots coming from one direction, and about three minutes later they heard three more shots from another direction, said Saleh Sbenaty, a congregation member and MTSU professor. He wasn’t sure if the shots were being fired at the Muslim group, but in the aftermath of the weekend vandalism, he said they felt it necessary to report. Several deputies are at the scene investigating the incident, he said. One piece of construction equipment was damaged over the weekend when it was burned, and three other pieces of equipment were doused with some sort of accelerant, Sbenaty said. The sheriff’s office, FBI and Bureau of ATF are investigating.
Poster Comment: Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office and ATF employees investigate apparent arson at the future site of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro on Saturday. MURFREESBORO, Tenn., Aug. 28, 2010 Fire at Tenn. Mosque Building Site Ruled Arson Construction Equipment at Site of Planned Islamic Center Torched; Vocal Protests Against Mosque Have Been Ongoing Federal officials are investigating a fire that started overnight at the site of a new Islamic center in a Nashville suburb. Ben Goodwin of the Rutherford County Sheriff's Department confirmed to CBS Affiliate WTVF that the fire, which burned construction equipment at the future site of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro, is being ruled as arson. Special Agent Andy Anderson of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives told CBS News that the fire destroyed one piece of construction equipment and damaged three others. Gas was poured over the equipment to start the fire, Anderson said. The ATF, FBI and Rutherford County Sheriff's Office are conducting a joint investigation into the fire, Anderson said. WTVF reports firefighters were alerted by a passerby who saw flames at the site. One large earth hauler was set on fire before the suspect or suspects left the scene. The chair of the center's planning committee, Essim Fathy, said he drove to the site at around 5:30 a.m. Saturday morning after he was contacted by the sheriff's department. "Our people and community are so worried of what else can happen," said Fathy. "They are so scared." The fire was smoldering by the time Fathy and the center's imam, Ossama Bahloul, had arrived. Fathy was told that responders had smelled gasoline near the fire. Fathy was later contacted by members of the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security, who told him the incident was under investigation and to remain calm. Digging had begun at the site, which was planned as a place of worship for the approximately 250 Muslim families in the Murfreesboro area, but no structure had been built yet, according to Saleh Sbenaty, a member of the planning committee and a professor of engineering technology at Middle Tennessee State University. "This is a shock," said Sbenaty. "We've had small act of vandals. But this is going to be a crime and whoever did it, they should be punished to the full extent of the law." The center had operated for years out of a small business suite. Planning members said the new building, which was being constructed next to a church, would help accommodate the area's growing Muslim community. "We unfortunately did not experience hostilities for the 30 years we've been here and have only seen the hostility since approval of the site plan for the new center," said Sbenaty. Opponents of a new Islamic center say they believe the mosque will be more than a place of prayer; they are afraid the 15-acre site that was once farmland will be turned into a terrorist training ground for Muslim militants bent on overthrowing the U.S. government. "They are not a religion. They are a political, militaristic group," Bob Shelton, a 76-year-old retiree who lives in the area, told The Associated Press. Shelton was among several hundred demonstrators who recently wore "Vote for Jesus" T-shirts and carried signs that said "No Sharia law for USA!," referring to the Islamic code of law. Others took their opposition further, spray painting a sign announcing the "Future site of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro" and tearing it up. Earlier this summer opponents criticized the planned mosque at hearings held by the Rutherford County Commission, as supporters held prayer vigils. At one such prayer vigil, WTVF reported opponents speaking out against construction. "No mosque in Murfreesboro. I don't want it. I don't want them here," Evy Summers said to WTVF. "Go start their own country overseas somewhere. This is a Christian country. It was based on Christianity."
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Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest"Our people and community are so worried of what else can happen," said Fathy. "They are so scared."
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