Australian police said on Thursday they had launched an investigation after a threatening letter was sent to the country’s largest mosque, the third such incident in the lead-up to Ramazan.
The letter sent to Lakemba Mosque in Sydney’s west on Wednesday contained a drawing of a pig and a threat to kill the “Muslim race”, local media reported.
Police said they had taken the letter for forensic testing and would continue to patrol religious sites, including the mosque, as well as community events.
The latest letter comes weeks after a similar message was mailed to the mosque, depicting Muslims inside a mosque on fire.
Police have also arrested and charged a 70-year-old man in connection with a third threatening letter sent to Lakemba Mosque’s staff in January.
The Lebanese Muslim Association, which runs the mosque, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC) it had written to the government to request more funding for additional security guards and CCTV cameras.
Some 5,000 people are expected to attend the mosque each night during Ramazan. More than 60 per cent of residents in the suburb of Lakemba identify as Muslim, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Bilal El-Hayek, mayor of Canterbury-Bankstown council, where Lakemba is located, said the community was feeling “very anxious”.
“I’ve heard first-hand from people saying that they won’t be sending their kids to practice this Ramazan because they’re very concerned about things that might happen in local mosques,” he said.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese condemned the recent string of threats.
“It is outrageous that people just going about commemorating their faith, particularly during the holy month for Muslims of Ramazan, are subject to this sort of intimidation,” he told ABC radio.