Mohd Zuhairee Mohd Yatim, the imam of the National Mosque in Kuala Lumpur, was slapped across the face in an attack during today’s congregational Friday prayers.
Zuhairee was reportedly reciting a Qur’anic verse during the afternoon prayers when a man, described as a Middle Easterner, walked past the congregation and pushed the imam.
The Star Online reports that after the initial attack, Zuhairee continued with his recitation. Upon seeing this, the assailant then slapped the imam across the face.
Members of the National Mosque security detail rushed into the main prayer hall and apprehended the man, before handing him over to the police.
As he was being escorted out of the mosque, the assailant was heard shouting in Arabic.
The Friday prayer session continued after that.
A video posted to Facebook by Astro Awani shows the commotion outside the mosque as the assailant was being escorted to a police patrol car, when members of the congregation present at the scene began to hit the man and hurl invective at him, with some audibly shouting “this is Malaysia!”:
In the space of an hour since its posting, the video has already gone viral, with more than 2,200 shares.
