Assailants throw gasoline bombs at Russian mosque

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
A group of assailants threw gasoline bombs at a mosque in a central Russian city early Thursday and scrawled extremist slogans on its fence, officials said. Police detained two suspects. The incident in Yaroslavl, about 240 kilometers (150 miles) northeast of Moscow, took place days after the same mosque was targeted in a similar attack and two synagogues were vandalized elsewhere in Russia, highlighting rising xenophobia in the country. The attack Thursday caused a small fire at the mosque, which was extinguished by a guard. Assailants painted swastikas on the mosque's fence and scrawled slogans including "Wipe out the black" and "Glory to Russia, forward Slavs!" Police detained two college students aged 17-18 on suspicion of inciting hatred and humiliating human dignity, regional police said in a statement. Rustam Batrov, imam of the Yaroslavl mosque, condemned the attack.