June 08, 2021 (TDI): Four members of a Pakistan-origin Muslim family have been killed in a premeditated truck attack in the city of London, Ontario, in what has been termed as a hate crime. The victims included two women, aged 74 and 44, a 46-year-old man and a 15-year-old girl. A 9-year-old boy has been seriously injured and is hospitalized. The attacker, 20, identified as Nathanial Veltman, has been arrested and charged with four counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.
According to Detective Superintendent Paul Waight, the condemnable attack was conducted as the victims were ‘Muslims’. Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Canada, has condemned this heinous act commenting in a tweet, ‘To the Muslim community in London and to Muslims across the country, know that we stand with you. Islamophobia has no place in any of our communities. This hate is insidious and despicable –and it must stop.’ He has also sympathized with the victims and extended his heartfelt wishes to the injured. Prime Minister Imran Khan has lamented over the incident calling it a ‘condemnable act of terrorism’ which unravels the ‘growing Islamophobia in Western countries. Furthermore, he has urged the international community to curb the menace of Islamophobia ‘holistically’.
