Campaign raises more than $100K for mosque ravaged by fire in Peterborough

TORONTO — An online fundraising campaign launched this weekend has since raised more than $100,000 of the $120,000 goal to help rebuild a mosque destroyed by fire in Peterborough, Ont. on Saturday.

Police said the fire was set deliberately around 11 p.m. just prior to the celebration of a child’s birth a half hour before the incident.

While the police investigation is ongoing, members of the Kawartha Muslim Religious Association is calling for authorities to treat the fire as a potential hate crime.

READ MORE: Paris attacks prompt Canadian Muslim group to issue warnings of potential backlash

Police said it is unclear if the fire was at all connected to the deadly attacks in Paris.

“The Muslim community has a very good relationship with the Peterborough community,” said the president of the association, Kenzu Abdella. “We had an open house just last year, and the mayor was here.”

But he said the community has been supportive in the hours since the fire, and for that, he’s immensely grateful.

Peterborough Mayor Daryl Bennett said on Twitter Monday that several church groups in the community have stepped up to offer space for worship until the repairs to the mosque are complete.

A statement issued by the mayor Saturday night called the mosque attack “a despicable act.”

“Masjid Al-Salaam, the name of the mosque, means Mosque of Peace,” he said. “The faith communities are cornerstones of our city, contributing to charitable organizations and helping those who are less fortunate.”

With a file from The Canadian Press