Police are making enquiries on a threat reportedly made on Al Noor mosque in Christchurch on Sunday.
Stuff has reported a threat and a photo of a man in a balaclava outside the Al Noor Mosque which was sent to around 2000 people via an encrypted messaging app called Telegram.
This threat comes just two weeks before the Christchurch Mosque attacks on March 15, 2019, that killed 51 people and injured a 100.
The threat issued on Sunday night showed a photo of a masked man sitting outside in a car outside the mosque.
As reported on Stuff, the image shows a man wearing dark glasses and a balaclava printed with a picture of a human skull. Through a car window, the front of the Al Noor can be seen, and in the background, four people are visible at the entrance of the mosque.
The message accompanied to the photo was both in English and Russian that implied the people at the ‘same mosque’ would be greeting each other for the ‘last time’ with a gun emoji or symbol also used in the message, Stuff reported.
The police spokesperson said they are aware of the matter and taking all threats made to the community seriously.
“Police is aware of this matter and takes all threats to our community extremely seriously. Enquiries are ongoing into the incident. For operational reasons we will not be providing details on security matters ahead of March 15 2020.” a police spokesperson told the media.
Security Intelligence Service director Rebecca Kitteridge last month warned that some Kiwis had been inspired by the March 15 terror attack, and monitoring such people had been difficult, Stuff reported.
“Police are working closely with the organisations involved, and we have the common aim of ensuring the safety of our communities,” a Police spokesperson said.
At a press conference this afternoon, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said she was devastated to see Muslim people threatened nearly a year on from the Christchurch terror attack, RNZ reported.
She said she had not been briefed on the threat and had only seen media reports.
More to come.
Disclaimer: Some content sourced from Stuff & RNZ
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