Worshippers inside the Masjid Al-Iman mosque on Friday for afternoon prayers
Days after the attacks targetting Muslims in New Zealand, Victoria’s Masjid Al-Iman mosque is hosting a workshop to discuss the incident.
The forum will be open to the Muslim community at 3 p.m. Sunday to talk about topics like safety and how to speak to children about what happened.
“It’s not fears of the Victoria community, we have so much support here… it’s about the broader topic of violence,” Mustafa Abousaleh, the secretary at the mosque said.
“Children probably got exposed to these things first because they are on social media… this will be to help them work this through their minds.”
A 28-year-old Australian gunman entered two mosques Friday and killed 50 people — 50 others are injured.
A disturbing live stream of the incident was posted online. New Zealand police are asking the public to not share the video.
“The video that came out was very horrific, and most mosques look alike and have their doors open… it’s easy to identify with the situation there,” Abousaleh said.
Victoria’s police chief Del Manak will also be attending the event. Another workshop for the general public at the mosque is being organized for the near future.
The suspected white supremacist was arrested by police following the targetted attack.
READ MORE: Death toll now at 50 following New Zealand mosque shootings
The incident is one of the worst mass-shootings in Commonwealth history. Vigils were held across the globe condemning the incident.
In Victoria on Friday the public dropped off flowers and heartfelt messages of support outside Victoria’s Mosque.
Flowers outside the Masjid Al-Iman mosque Sunday (Photo: Mustafa Abousaleh )
A vigil also took place beside Victoria City Hall, where some New Zealand citizens attended and thanked the public for their support.
“We are all hurting as a country for our fellow New Zealanders,” said New Zealand national Suzette as she held back tears at the vigil.
“We are a peaceful nation so for someone to take liberty and to do that to our country is just, as we say in New Zealand, has gutted us.”
The mosque can be found at 2218 Quadra Street in Victoria.
Julian Kolsut
