Counter-terrorism officers investigate after five injured in violent incidents in Edinburgh | Scotland

Police said counter-terrorism officers were involved in investigations into a series of violent incidents in Edinburgh that left five people injured.

The organization called Muslim Engagement and Development announced that many of those injured were Muslims.

Police Scotland said a 36-year-old white Scottish man had been arrested and there was no further threat to the public.

Officers were called to reports of an incident in the Sighthill area of ​​the city at around 8.50pm on Friday in which two people were injured.

The Scottish Association of Mosques said two worshipers in the park were attacked after leaving Broomhouse mosque.

Police said they later received reports of incidents around retailers in the west and north of the city. Police said three more people were allegedly attacked in the Telford Road and Leith Walk area during this period.

Police said five men – two aged 22 and the others aged 24, 27 and 39 – suffered various injuries and three required hospital treatment. The injured are not life-threatening.

Omar Afzal, director of public affairs at the Scottish Mosques Association, told The Scotsman: “There is a deep sense of shock, alarm and anger in Muslim communities in Scotland today.

“These latest attacks are deeply disturbing. But they are not a vacuum. Muslim communities have been warning for years about the consequences of normalizing anti-Muslim hatred in public discourse. When prejudices are not challenged, this creates an environment in which some individuals are emboldened to act on that hatred.”

Assistant Chief Constable Catriona Paton said: “I want to send a clear message of support to all our communities that there is no place for racism or faith-based hatred in Scotland, which is at its best when we stand together.

“Officers responded to numerous reports of a rapidly developing series of events in Edinburgh before arresting a man and our priority was public safety.

“Extensive work is ongoing to determine all conditions.

“We are supported by counter-terrorism police and work under the direction of the Crown Office and the Procurator Fiscal Service.”

Police closed Leith Walk on Friday evening following the development of events. “Posts on social media show a shirtless man wandering the streets of the Scottish capital with a long gun and breaking down the door of a restaurant.”

Another video also emerged of the same man shouting “protect the country” while being held on the ground by a police officer.

A major incident public portal has been set up to encourage the public to send information directly to officers.