Hours after Trump signs Muslim ban, Texas mosque goes up in flames

Adrienne Mahsa Varkiani
Associate Editor @ThinkProgress. World News and all things freelance.
29 mins ago
Hours after Trump signs Muslim ban, Texas mosque goes up in flames
This is just tragic.



A Texas mosque was set on fire just hours after Trump signed an executive order restricting migration from Muslim-majority countries.

The Islamic Center of Victoria was set on fire around 2 a.m. on Saturday, according to local reports.

Victoria Fire Marshal Tom Legler told the Victoria Advocate he had no theories about the cause of the fire, but he is seeking assistance from state and federal fire investigators.

“It’s a house of worship,” Shahid Hashmi, the president of the center, told the Victoria Advocate, as he watched the center burning. Hashmi also said he will not speculate about the cause of the fire, but mentioned the center was burglarized last week.

Hashmi said the center is home to over 100 congregation members. No one was injured in the fire.

On Sunday, the center plans to hold a public prayer service in the lawn to “pray for peace & safety for all.” The center said it will be rebuilt with love, and it has already started a GoFundMe fundraiser for financial support to do so.

Just hours before the fire, on Friday afternoon, Trump signed the “Protection Of The Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into The United States” order. Under the order, nationals of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen are prohibited from entering the United States for at least the next 90 days. All refugee admission has been suspended for at least 120 days, and the admission of Syrian refugees has permanently suspended until further notice.

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https://thinkprogress.org/islamic-center-of-victoria-fire-8a683f632a7a#.fqoduhvvz