Islam Times - Labour leader Corbyn attacked while visiting London mosque

Islam Times - UK Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has been attacked by suspected Islamophobes outside a mosque in north London where he was attending an event meant to tackle negative stigma around Muslims in Britain.

The Metropolitan Police said on Sunday that Corbyn was unhurt after the attack, which took place after a man assaulted the opposition leader with an egg outside Muslim Welfare Centre in Finsbury Park.

The Met said the attacker, a 41-year-old man, was arrested quickly following the attack.

The British media outlets described the attacker as a pro-Brexit activist who was willing to show his opposition to Corbyn’s announcement that he and the Labour would back a second referendum on Britain’s withdrawal from the EU.

The Sky News, citing its correspondent at the scene, said Corbyn was hit by the egg thrown by the suspected pro-Brexit campaigner.

“While he was here in an upstairs room, a protester - a pro-Brexit protester we understand, according to eyewitnesses - placed an egg on his head,” said Jon Craig, who works for the news channel.

Corbyn has long been a target of hate attacks by anti-Muslim figures and groups in Britain, specially due to his support for the Palestinian cause and his opposition to Israel and Zionism which many say is being wrongly depicted as an anti-Semite tendency.

Corbyn was in Finsbury Park Mosque to attend the fifth annual Visit My Mosque day. The event, organized by Muslim Council of Britain, is an opportunity for Muslim places of worship across the UK to open their doors to the public.

Reports said Corbyn had enjoyed a warm welcome by Muslims during the visit to the mosque. Labour’s Diane Abbott, the shadow secretary, accompanied Corbyn in the visit.