Man held over ‘attacks on children’ at Yorkshire mosque

Footage of children apparently being hit by their teachers during lessons in a British mosque are due to be aired on Channel 4’s Dispatches programme tonight.

Some of the footage, apparently shot at a mosque in Keighley, has been posted on the internet and has been viewed by detectives.

West Yorkshire police issued a statement which said: “We have recently become aware of a number of incidents of alleged assault at a mosque in the Keighley area and just before the weekend were able to view edited footage of the alleged incident.

“These incidents have been recorded and posted on the internet.

“One man has been arrested in connection with the incidents and has been released on police bail pending further enquiries.

“West Yorkshire Police are receiving full co-operation from the Keighley Muslim Association who are working with us in support of the inquiry.

“Given that the criminal investigation is ongoing, we would ask that media outlets in possession of material relevant to this inquiry should handle the material responsibly and not publish or disseminate it in any way.”

Footage in the programme includes scenes of teenagers and a preacher hitting younger children.

Pupils as young as six or seven were caught on camera being hit and kicked by the people supposed to be looking after them.

The screening of the documentary follows an investigation into how young Muslims are being taught extremist views in British mosques.

A hidden camera installed by a reporter at a school in Birmingham recorded a preacher telling pupils “the disbelievers are the worst creatures, they are the worst creatures”.

The 11-year-olds are then told not to trust more liberal Muslims.

Their teacher said: “The person who’s got less than a fistful of beard, then you should stay away from him the same way you should stay away from a serpent or a snake.”

Another group of pupils are told in an assembly at the school: “The disbelievers, they are the worst of all people.

“The Hindus do, they drink piss, I’ve told you this.

“Do they have any intellect? No.”

The school is inspected by government-approved teams and is required to teach tolerance and respect for other religions.

Access to the school was gained when the undercover investigator got a job as a volunteer in 2009.

He was allowed to sit in on some lessons, but he was not let into Islamic classes.

In July last year, he went into one of the rooms where he heard Islamic studies was being taught and he left a secret camera.

Dr Taj Hargey, founder of the Muslim Educational Centre of Oxford, said: “This is totally against Islam.

“This is something that is deeply humiliating and shameful to Muslims to hear other Muslims describe people of other religions in such derogatory, disparaging terms.”

A spokesman for the Department of Education said: “The Government does not support the use of physical punishment in schools and other children’s settings.”

Dispatches: Lessons in Hatred and Violence is to be aired on Channel 4 at 8pm today.