Violence flares between youths in Windsor over plan to build mosque

Race relations in Windsor are under increasing strain following three nights of violence sparked by plans to build a mosque in a predominantly white suburb.

Fighting between white and Asian youths culminated in a petrol bomb attack on Wednesday night on a dairy owned by the Muslim businessman whose plans for an Islamic centre have proved bitterly divisive in the Berkshire town.

Related articles

• Yasmin Alibhai-Brown: An eclectic country which retains its island mentality
• Dominic Lawson: The best demonstration of the Muslim case would be a great march denouncing violence
• Straw: I feel uncomfortable with women wearing veils
• Muslim policeman excused from duty at Israeli embassy
• Revealed: the diversity that defines a nation
• Leading article: We are repeating the mistakes of the past
• Search the news archive for more stories

The violence flared after Ramadan prayers on Monday, when a clash erupted between white and Asian youths wielding pitchforks, baseball bats and iron bars.

The next night, dozens of police were sent to Vale Road in Dedworth, a suburb a short distance from Windsor Castle, as a stand-off had developed involving around 50 youths outside a building used for Muslim prayer. A police helicopter flew overhead and officers searched youths for offensive weapons.

Yesterday, a large, black scorch mark was visible on the front of the Medina Dairy following the petrol bomb attack and repairs were being carried out on a fleet of articulated lorries vandalised in the trouble.

Disorder has flared after years of animosity between some residents and Sardar Hussain, whom they accuse of trying to turn a corner of the mainly white area into a Muslim ghetto.

Mr Hussain, a father of seven, owns Technor House, a former office opposite the dairy, which has been used without planning permission for prayers, mainly for staff and family. He has applied to the royal borough of Windsor to convert it into an Islamic centre for up to 80 worshippers.

The most vehement opposition comes from Vale Road residents, who complain of being kept awake by lorries at the dairy. Traffic congestion, apparently caused by the prayer centre, would be the thin end of the wedge if the plans are approved, they claim.