Police in Northern Ireland have identified and arrested an Islamophobic militant who attacked a mosque in County Down, the Belfast Telegraph reported.

A 42-year-old Irishman was arrested on suspicion of an attack on a mosque mainly attended by the Bangladeshi diaspora. On Saturday morning, an attacker threw a Molotov cocktail at the mosque building, but miraculously it did not catch fire. The consequences of the attack were discovered by believers who came to the morning prayer.

"A 42-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of crimes including arson, possession of an explosive device and attempted intimidation. He remains in custody," said the police representative.

According to one of the residents, Abdulrob, whose 4 generations of his family visited this mosque, local residents reacted with great sympathy to the incident and provided support to the Muslim community.

"The locals have all said they are sorry for what happened, they are bringing us flowers, pies, cookies and many other things," Muslim said.

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