Muslim community in Japan shaken by suspected arson attacks: ‘everyone is scared’

Muslims in a small town in northern Japan have been rattled by several suspected arson attacks, following months of online agitation targeting the community over purported construction violations. Three fires in just over two weeks have damaged Pakistani-owned businesses and the Ebetsu Masjid, a mosque in Ebetsu, central Hokkaido, prompting police investigations and deepening anxiety among the city’s roughly 700 Muslim residents. “We have women and children in the community, and I can tell yo...

By Julian Ryall