Birmingham: Police launched a murder investigation on Wednesday into the deaths of three men hit by a car in the English city of Birmingham.
Residents said the dead men, aged 21 to 31, were members of Birmingham's South Asian communities who had been patrolling their neighbourhood to keep it safe from looters in the aftermath of riots.
Tariq Jahan, whose 21-year-old son Haroon was killed, stood in a Birmingham street and pleaded with the South Asian community not to seek revenge against the car's occupants, reported to be black.
"Today we stand here to plead with all the youth to remain calm, for our community to stand united," he said. "This is not a race issue. The family has received messages of sympathy and support from all parts of the community - all races, all faiths and backgrounds."
He remonstrated with angry young men, urging them to "grow up" and go home.
The two brothers and a friend who were killed have been named as Shazad Ali, 29; Abdul Musavir, 30; and Haroon Jahan, 21.
The chief constable of West Midlands Police said a man had been arrested on suspicion of murder.
He said the information the police had at the moment supported the idea that the car was driven at the men deliberately.
A day of mourning in Birmingham ended with late night Muslim prayers at the petrol station where the three men were run over and killed.
Hundreds of people from the British Asian community gathered amid heightened police security.
A handful of candles were lit below the flowers that formed an improvised memorial for the three men.
Witnesses said a carload of suspected rioters sped into a fleeing crowd of shop defenders, hurling the three young men into the air.
With police nowhere to be seen, locals armed themselves with bricks and stones, clubs and cricket bats to fend off carloads of marauding gangs.
Their vigilante stand in Birmingham's west end saved a humble row of family-run shops and a red-brick mosque from the looters' grasp - but at a terrible cost.
Community elder Muzaffar Hussain said: "The Asians, the indigenous white people of Britain, the black community - we're all one, we're all together in this. And we don't condone these latest events that have happened, we absolutely condemn them, and we are basically gathered here tonight just to pay our respects to the deceased."
Residents said the dead men, aged 21 to 31, were members of Birmingham's South Asian communities who had been patrolling their neighbourhood to keep it safe from looters in the aftermath of riots.
Tariq Jahan, whose 21-year-old son Haroon was killed, stood in a Birmingham street and pleaded with the South Asian community not to seek revenge against the car's occupants, reported to be black.
"Today we stand here to plead with all the youth to remain calm, for our community to stand united," he said. "This is not a race issue. The family has received messages of sympathy and support from all parts of the community - all races, all faiths and backgrounds."
He remonstrated with angry young men, urging them to "grow up" and go home.
The two brothers and a friend who were killed have been named as Shazad Ali, 29; Abdul Musavir, 30; and Haroon Jahan, 21.
The chief constable of West Midlands Police said a man had been arrested on suspicion of murder.
He said the information the police had at the moment supported the idea that the car was driven at the men deliberately.
A day of mourning in Birmingham ended with late night Muslim prayers at the petrol station where the three men were run over and killed.
Hundreds of people from the British Asian community gathered amid heightened police security.
A handful of candles were lit below the flowers that formed an improvised memorial for the three men.
Witnesses said a carload of suspected rioters sped into a fleeing crowd of shop defenders, hurling the three young men into the air.
With police nowhere to be seen, locals armed themselves with bricks and stones, clubs and cricket bats to fend off carloads of marauding gangs.
Their vigilante stand in Birmingham's west end saved a humble row of family-run shops and a red-brick mosque from the looters' grasp - but at a terrible cost.
Community elder Muzaffar Hussain said: "The Asians, the indigenous white people of Britain, the black community - we're all one, we're all together in this. And we don't condone these latest events that have happened, we absolutely condemn them, and we are basically gathered here tonight just to pay our respects to the deceased."
No comments:
Post a Comment