Minnesota's governor declared that the explosion at a mosque outside Minneapolis over the weekend was "an act of terrorism."
An improvised explosive device caused an explosion at the Dar Al-Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, the FBI said.
"A criminal act of terrorism against the imam who, thank the good lord, was not present in his office, as it would appear that this person intended. And the destruction done to this sacred site is just unthinkable, unforgivable and I hope and pray that the perpetrator will be caught and prosecuted with full extent of the law," Dayton said.
There were 2,213 anti-Muslim bias incidents in 2016 [The Associated Press]
A mosque in the US state of Minnesota was bombed early on Saturday, while worshippers gathered inside for morning prayers.
No one was injured in the attack at the Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, but police say the imam’s office had been damaged.
The
Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched an investigation into the attack, which took place at around 5am local time (09:00 GMT).
Richard Thorton, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Minneapolis Division, said that the investigation will determine whether the incident was a hate crime and who may have been behind it.
Thorton added that the explosion was caused by an “improvised explosive device”, and that investigators had recovered components of the device to figure out how it was put together.
‘Unimaginable’ attack
Worshippers managed to extinguish the blaze before firefighters arrived, according to a statement from the Muslim American Society of Minnesota.
The group’s director, Asad Zaman, told reporters that “a witness saw something being thrown at the imam’s office window from a van or truck before the blast”.
Terrorism: Minnesota mosque bombed !