Governor Mark Dayton, who joined other public officials and community leaders for a meeting at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in suburban Minneapolis on Sunday, described the bombing attack at the mosque on Saturday as “so wretched” and “not Minnesota”.
Like other US mosques, the center in Bloomington, just south of Minneapolis, occasionally receives threatening calls and emails. But leaders said they were more frightened after the weekend attack, in which an explosive shattered windows and damaged a room as worshippers prepared for morning prayers.
“We feel like it’s much deeper and scarier than like something random,” Mohamed Omar, the center’s executive director, said on Sunday. “It’s so scary.”
No one was hurt in the blast, which happened around 5am on Saturday. Windows of the imam’s office were shattered, either by the blast or by an object thrown through them. The FBI is seeking suspects and trying to determine whether the incident was a hate crime.
Besides serving as a place of worship and community center, the mosque has a fitness center, gymnasiums for boys and girls, a football field and adjoins a city park, Omar said. He estimated the mosque holds up to 300 worshippers for Friday prayers.
The community center also hosts computer classes, a basketball league, religious classes, lectures and other events. “It’s a place that a family can come and get everything they need,” Omar said.