Canadian opposition leader Jagmeet Singh has called on the politicians to address hate resulting in violence against Muslims, and not to use Islamophobia for divisive politics to gain votes.

    The Leader of the New Democratic Party was speaking on Tuesday 8 June after four members of a Muslim family were killed in an Islamophobic attack in London, Canada by a 20 year old terrorist Nathaniel Veltman.

    He further went on to say that Canada was a place “of racism, of violence, of genocide of Indigenous people and our country is a place where Muslims aren’t safe”   while asking “how many more families will be killed before we do something.”

    He later tweeted, “Everyone should feel safe to be who they are. We will wear our hijabs and our turbans with pride. We will not let terror win and we will stand with #OurLondonFamily”

    Nathaniel Veltman, the 20-year-old man has now been charged with four counts of first-degree murder following  the vehicle attack on Sunday 6 June 2021 in London, Ontario state of Canada for the killing four members of a Muslim family — Salman Afzaal 46, his wife Madiha Salman 44, their daughter Yumna 15, and Salman Afzaal’s mother 74, and injuring the couple’s nine-year-old son Fayez.

    “There is evidence that this was a planned, premeditated act and that the family was targeted because of their Muslim faith,”  London Police Service Det.-Insp. Paul Waight said.

    Earlier on 29 January 2017 in another terrorist attack at the Islamic Cultural Centre of Quebec City Six Muslims were killed and five others seriously injured after evening prayers when a terrorist entered the prayer hall and opened fire.

    Analysts have said now the second lethal terrorist attack against Muslims in Canada seem to have been primed by some Canadian politicians accusing the former PM Stephen Harper for stok ing Islamophobia in order to gain votes.

    London Mayor Ed Holder said in a statement on Monday that three days of mourning would be held in the city after the attack. “Let me be clear: This was an act of mass murder, perpetrated against Muslims — against Londoners — and rooted in unspeakable hatred,” Holder said.

    A moment of silence was also observed on Monday 7 June in Parliament in the capital, Ottawa, where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described the deadly violence as “a terrorist attack motivated by hatred in the heart of one of our communities”.

    “Unlike every other night, that family never made it home. Their lives were taken in a brutal, cowardly and brazen act of violence. This killing was no accident,” said Trudeau, promising to take stronger action against far-right groups in Canada.

    Statistics Canada said in March that police-reported hate crimes targeting Muslims “rose slightly” to 181 incidents in 2019 – the last year for which the data is available. That is up from 166 incidents the previous year.

    The Organization of Islamic Cooperation called on authorities to take the necessary preventive measures to address anti-Muslim hatred, which it said is spreading in many countries where Muslims constitute a minority.

    In its statement issued on Thursday 10 June 2021, the OIC renewed its calls on the United Nations and other global bodies to declare March 15 a day against Islamophobia and intolerance of Muslims.