Nothing will stop me from praying
Stabbed Muslim leader’s defiance as he returns to mosque day after attack
A MUSLIM leader who was stabbed at a mosque left hospital less than 24 hours after the attack yesterday and declared: ‘Nothing will stop me praying.’
Raafat Maglad, 70, was seriously wounded when a man thrust a 5in kitchen knife into his neck as he held afternoon prayers for 200 people.
He needed six stitches and suffered possible nerve damage to his right arm.
But despite his ordeal and injuries, the defiant father of three asked doctors to discharge him yesterday so he could return to the mosque.
It came as a 29-year-old man continued to be questioned by police on suspicion of attempted murder.
Wearing a sling to support his arm, Mr Maglad said before holding afternoon prayers at London Central Mosque: ‘ This attack won’t change my behaviour. Nothing will stop me praying, and I will be back calling prayers as soon as I can. I have to find out if I need surgery first.’
Describing the attack, he said: ‘I was closing my eyes to pray and put down my head. It felt like someone hit me with a brick.
‘It was terrible, there was so much blood. I put my hand up and tried to close the cut.
‘Everyone stopped him and called the ambulance. I feel lucky. It could have cut my jugular and I would have had no chance.’
Mr Maglad has been the muazzin – the person who leads and recites the call to prayer – at the mosque near Regent’s Park for 30 years.
He was stabbed as he held prayers at 3pm on Thursday. Worshippers managed to pin the knifeman down, while others gave first aid.
Police later led away the handcuffed suspect, who is thought to be Eastern European and was wearing a red hoodie and had bare feet.
Abi Watik, 59, who had been praying one row behind the attacker, said: ‘We were kneeling down, as we started sayshippers ing Allahu Akbar he got the knife from under his trousers and cut him.
‘I’ve seen him many times in the mosque before, many times. He has been coming for about six months.
‘Everyone was shocked, 20 people were around him and put him on the floor, he doesn’t even say one word.
‘ He doesn’t scream, he doesn’t swear. The other worwere very brave.’ Mr Maglan said he feared the knife wound has caused some damage to a nerve.
‘Doctors have told me I need an MRI to see how much damage there is, but I can’t move my right arm,’ he told the Evening Standard.
‘It’s a dead weight, it’s heavy and numb.’
He added: ‘ I have six stitches in my neck. I told the doctors I didn’t want to stay in hospital with all wires going in me so I asked them to discharge me early... I wanted to be at home.
‘I would like to thank everyone who helped. Last night the emergency room was full of so many people supporting me. It was nice.’
Asked about his attacker, Mr Maglad said: ‘I forgive him. I feel very sorry for him.
‘As a Muslim I don’t have any hatred in my heart.’
The attack was less than 24 hours after a far- Right extremist shot dead nine people in shisha bars in Germany, before killing his mother and then himself.
Scotland Yard said that it was not treating the mosque stabbing as a terror attack.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan joined Mr Maglad for prayers yesterday and addressed worshippers over a loudspeaker outside afterwards.
He said: ‘If you see anybody acting suspiciously please be the eyes and ears of our police so they can keep us safe.’
At one point a heckler shouted: ‘We elected you, what has he done for us?’
Mr Maglad, from Queen’s Park, led the prayers at the funeral of Dodi al-Fayed, boyfriend of Princess Diana, at the temple in 1997. He is originally from Sudan.
Muslim groups have called for better security measures at mosques.
The London Central Mosque has 24-hour guards but it does not have airport- style metal detectors.
‘I tried to close cut with hand’