• A Muslim woman studying in an Ontario library was violently attacked by a 25-year-old woman who attempted to set her hijab on fire.
• The NCCM urged political leaders to address rising Islamophobia, citing past deadly attacks on Canadian Muslims.
A Muslim woman who was nearly set on fire at an Ontario library over the weekend is left shaken.
The family woman and mother who was studying in her favourite “quiet corner of the library” was subjected to the vicious Islamophobic attack after being approached by an unknown assailant— a 25 year old female. “She violently grabbed my hijab (…). She pulled out a lighter and tried to set me on fire,” the woman recounted, capturing the shock and sheer fear of that moment.
According to Durham Regional Police, the attacker hurled profanities and objects at the Muslim woman, attempted to remove her hijab, and then poured an unknown liquid over the woman’s hijab before igniting a lighter. The victim’s desperate cries for help prompted a response from library security, and although the suspect fled, police later took the individual into custody and charged her with two counts of assault with a weapon and three counts of failing to comply with probation order.
“I can’t stop thinking, ‘What if the lighter had worked? What if my hijab had caught on fire?'” said the victim’s statement.
“I never imagined that a visit to my favourite, quiet corner of the library would turn into one of the most terrifying moments of my life,” said the victim’s statement read by senior advocacy officer Fatema Abdalla.
The National Council of Canadian Muslims expressed deep concern over the attack. “It is an outrage that this kind of violence has become a regular occurrence in our community,” stated NCCM Chief Executive Officer Stephen Brown. He also stated that the organisation is strongly urging police to investigate the incident as a hate crime.
“It is an outrage that this kind of violence has become a regular occurrence in our community. Incidents of Islamophobia have increased exponentially in recent years. It is time for our elected leaders to step up and address this issue collaboratively.”
With the federal election nearing, the group is urging all political parties to present concrete strategies to combat Islamophobia, citing the deadly 2021 London, Ont., terror attack that killed four Muslim family members in cold blood and the 2017 Quebec City mosque shooting that left six dead and 19 wounded. The organisation also reports receiving hundreds of calls about Islamophobic incidents in the past year—though actual cases are likely far higher, as many go unreported due to a deep-seated distrust of law enforcement within affected communities.
This incident serves as a sobering reminder of the rampant Islamophobia that continues to affect many Muslims living in Canada and globally.
