Buddhist mob attacks Muslims and set Myanmar mosque ablaze

A crowd of Buddhists has set fire to a mosque in the north of Myanmar, furious that a Muslim place of worship was built near a Buddhist pagoda in the predominantly Buddhist country. 

A crowd of Buddhists has set fire to a mosque in the north of Myanmar, furious that a Muslim place of worship was built near a Buddhist pagoda in the predominantly Buddhist country. 

The attackers, who were “wielding sticks, knives and other weapons”, overwhelmed security forces before burning the temple down, according to state-owned Global New Light of Myanmar. The attack happened on Friday, 1 July, in the village of Hpakhant in Kachin state.

“The mob was unresponsive and entirely beyond control. The building was razed by the riotous crowd,” according to the paper.

Reports say the crowd attacked policemen protecting the mosque and prevented fire crews from reaching the building to put out the blaze.

Last week, a mob destroyed another mosque over a dispute over its construction in ThayelTha Mein village in central Myanmar. 

No one has so far been arrested for the destruction of the mosques.