Police in Norrköping came out in force Wednesday afternoon after they had been tipped off about a “mysterious foreign man” behaving strangely at a bus stop, and then getting on the bus with his rucksack.
It turns out the 28-year-old man had carried out the muslim praying ritual at the bus stop, but when police caught up with him, and searched him, all suspicions were dismissed.
The local police told news agency TT that this is not the first time they got reports of people with foreign looks behaving in what is seen as “suspiciously”. They claim the number of reports have increased after the failed suicide attack among Christmas shoppers at Drottninggatan in Stockholm. “the atmosphere is very agitated,” says officer Torbjörn Lindqvist at the police in Östergötland.
Also Moustafa Kharraki, deputy head of the Swedish Muslim Council, has noticed more suspicion of muslims lately. “This is very serious and it concerns pure discrimination. People have become fearful and suspicious, a lot has changed since Drottninggatan,” Kharraki told the news agency TT.
Kharraki finds the actions of the Norrköping police “unacceptable”. “The police needs more knowledge. Any muslim can pray in a public space. It is completely normal and just because you pray, you are not a terrorist.”
Via Islam in Europe