Who Is Mohammed Hijab? ‘Public Speaker’ with an Anti-Semitic Past and His Role in Leicester Unrest

Following the violent clashes in Leicester and other parts of the UK between Indian and Pakistani communities, the role of a so-called public speaker Mohammed Hijab has come to the fore.

On his website, Mohammed Hijab calls himself ‘a debater and public speaker who engages in discussions and polemics on a wide variety of topics including religion, politics and society’ but videos shared on social media websites paint a different picture.

Read More: Mob Launches Violent Protest Outside Durga Bhawan Temple in UK’s Smethwick; Chants of ‘Allahu Akbar’ Heard

‘Weak and Pathetic’

While several videos of Mohammed Hijab have surfaced on social media sites like Twitter and Facebook, three videos have gained attention of those following the clashes in the UK. Two of those three videos were shared on social media in the week of the clashes along with one old video.

The recent videos film his reactions and responses to the violent clashes in Leicester. In one video he is seen making indecent and racist remarks about the Hindu community.

Read More: Communal Violence in UK’s Leicester: India-Pak Match Result to Rampage | Exclusive Inside Story

“If they believe in reincarnation, what a humiliation of them to be reincarnated into some pathetic, weak, cowardly people like that,” Hijab could be heard saying. He also falsely claims that Muslims were assaulted and people from the Hindu community were trying to portray themselves as ‘gangstas’ (gangsters).

A group of young men accompanying him can be heard chanting ‘Takbir – Allah O Akbar’ as he rouses them with inflammatory remarks.

News18 could not independently verify the authenticity of the videos.

‘You’re an Inciter’

The second video shared is purportedly shot in Leicester but in the video it can be seen that some people who congregated to listen to Mohammed Hijab stopping him calling him an inciter.

In the video below, a man in the background could be heard saying: “You’re an inciter. You’re only going to make things worse. Show some restraint.”

After that some individuals from the crowd were seen removing the loudspeaker from his hands in a bid to stop him.

‘We’ll Find Some Jews’

One old video in the aftermath of the violent clashes of Mohammed Hijab resurfaced where he is seen openly making antisemitic chants and even threatening a police officer that he would kill a dog which the Jewish boys had brought along with them.

A person narrating the video, however, claimed that Hijab threatened to kill the police dog. The narrator also said he along with others faced a violent assault while leaving a kosher restaurant.

This video has garnered a lot of views after being shared and narrates the harassment few Jewish individuals faced in London.

Those Jewish individuals were caught in a ‘Free Palestine’ rally where instead of proposing a peaceful resolution to the problems in that particular region, Mohammed Hijab is seen making antisemitic remarks and instigating Muslim citizens against Jews.

Read More: India Slams Communal Violence in UK’s Leicester, Demands Action, Protection for the Affected

The video shared by Henry Jackson Society writer and commentator Wasiq Wasiq shows Hijab saying: “We’ll find some Jews there. We want some Zionists.”

Here also a group of young men accompanying him can be heard chanting ‘Takbir – Allah O Akbar’ as he rouses them with inflammatory remarks against the Jewish community.

Later the narrator in the video said that Mohammed Hijab with few other miscreants drove through Golders Green, a Jewish neighbourhood, while broadcasting inflammatory messages on the side of a mini-truck.

The clashes in Leicester and the recent violent protest outside the Durga Bhawan Temple in Smethwick erupted following the cricket match between India and Pakistan.

Unrest followed after a restaurant owner from the Pakistani community residing in the city insulted the Indian national flag which led to unrest between the two groups.

Media outlets from the UK report that gangs of youth clashed and Leicester Police made arrests in a bid to restore calm in the city. It was further revealed in an earlier report by CNN-News18 that almost 10,000 youth were brought from Birmingham to Leicester to create unrest in the city.

Several houses were identified using symbols and members of the household were attacked. A person from the Hindu community also faced a knife attack. Videos shared on social media also showed a member of the gang outside the Durga Bhawan Temple in Smethwick showing indecent gestures at temple officials.

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