Police respond to the bombing of a Jackonsville mosque.

A white male in his forties allegedly used some sort of incendiary device to set a Jacksonville mosque on fire during prayer time.  Worshipers chased the criminal (terrorist?) away, and thankfully nobody was hurt, but the mosque sustained fire damage. First Coast News is reporting:

Possible Hate Crime Under Investigation after Fire at Islamic Center of NE Florida

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A fire at a mosque on the Southside is under investigation as a possible hate crime.

Worshipers at the Islamic Center of Northeast Florida heard a loud noise outside the mosque shortly before evening prayers Monday night.

Witnesses went outside and found some type of incendiary device had started a fire.  The fire was put out with a fire extinguisher.  No one was hurt.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said the fire marshal, ATF and FBI representatives responded to the incident, which is being looked at as a possible hate crime.

“A possible bias-motivated attack on a house of worship should be of great concern to Americans of all faiths, and particularly to our nation’s religions and political leaders,” said CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad.  “Those who shape public opinion must begin to speak out against the rising level of anti-Muslim sentiment in our society.”

CAIR says a man in his 40s entered the Islamic Center on April 4, and shouted, “Stop this blaspheming!”  The man said he’d be back as people chased him away.

Can you imagine the national hysteria if a Muslim had bombed a synagogue or church?  Meanwhile, this story will barely be mentioned.  No wonder so many people think that all terrorists are Muslims.  Will the Muslim worshipers who bravely chased the man away be honored in any way?  Can one imagine the honors heaped on Jewish or Christian parishioners had they chased away a Muslim who had done such a thing?

Rabbi Elior Noam Chen

A Rabbi has been accused by Israeli officials of burning and cutting toddlers as part of a purification ritual. These stories are ugly and cast a dark shadow on adherents of faith, but one clearly notices how this case is being treated as a lone wolf acting out of a misguided direction. The case is rightly being cast as an aberration and does not impugn all of Judaism as the source of this Rabbi’s criminality. One has to ask though, that well worn question: “what if he were Muslim?”

A self-appointed rabbi accused by Israeli officials of burning and cutting toddlers as part of a purification ritual will be extradited from Brazil, an official said Thursday.

Elior Noam Chen will be picked up Oct. 27 in Brasilia by two Israeli agents, a Brazilian Foreign Ministry spokesman said.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to discuss the case.

An Israeli embassy official also confirmed that extradition was imminent for Chen.

Chen and several of his followers allegedly used knives, hammers and other instruments to abuse children as young as 3 and 4 years old in the West Bank settlement of Beitar Illit in February and March 2008.

Chen allegedly hit the children in the head and face and burned their hands. One child sustained permanent brain damage and is in a vegetative state, according to Israeli officials.

In Israel, Chen faces charges of child abuse, violence against minors and
conspiracy.

Brazilian police arrested Chen in Sao Paulo in June 2008 after a 45-day
manhunt. Police have not said how or when he and his family arrived in the South American country.

He fought extradition and his case was heard last May by Brazil’s Supreme
Court, which found there was cause for Chen to stand trial for allegedly
subjecting eight children to intense physical and mental suffering because they were supposedly possessed by the devil.

An appeal to the court was rejected last month.

His extradition had to be formalized by Brazil’s Justice and Foreign
Ministries, and final approval had to be given by Brazil’s President Luiz
Inacio Lula da Silva