JERUSALEM, December 8, 2011 (WAFA) - The British Consul-General in Jerusalem Vincent Fean visited Thursday the mosque in the village of Burqin, and condemned the arson attack by Israeli settlers on it, according to a press release by British Consulate-General in Jerusalem.   

It said Fean visited the mosque to see on the ground the damages caused by the attack, where a flaming tyre was thrown into the entrance of the mosque and its walls were sprayed with graffiti.

Meeting with the Mayor of Burqin, Ikrima Samara, and locals there, he expressed his support and solidarity with the people of Burqin against these criminal attacks.

On the attack, Fean stated: “On behalf of the British government, I deplore the senseless arson attack on the mosque in the West Bank village of Burqin on Dec 7th, 2011. This despicable attack on a place of worship is a pre-planned crime intended to provoke violence.”

He called upon “the Israeli government to pursue the criminals responsible and bring them to trial.”

He concluded, “I warmly commend and respect the restraint shown by the people of Burqin. I am deeply impressed by their self- restraint under severe provocation. I greatly admire their refusal to be drawn into retaliation against such acts of mindless violence.”

F.R.