A Muslim physician on his way to the mosque Sunday morning was shot and stabbed by three masked men, news outlets reported.
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The man, Arslan Tajammul, was outside the Madrasah Islamiah Masjid Noor mosque, when he was attacked by the three masked men on foot, police said.
One of the assailants pulled out a gun and shot Tajammul twice before the three fled from the scene.
Mohammed Imaduddin, a spokesperson for the Madrasah Islamiah Masjid Noor mosque, told local news the doctor had parked along the street before walking towards the mosque for prayer.
“It is very scary right now given the current political climate,” Mr. Imaduddin told news station ABC 13, saying that there were children outside when the incident occurred. “From what I hear, this is the third incident this week in the Houston area involving a Muslim getting shot. This is a community place, we have kids that come here, we have people young and old come here.”
Investigators say the victim will remain in the hospital intensive care unit for 24 hours, but is expected to survive his injuries.
While police say there is no indication the assault was a hate crime, many believe otherwise. With anti-Muslim hate crimes happening with increasing frequency, many worshipers at the mosque say they fear for their safety, and that of their communities.
The American Civil Liberties Union has tracked incidents of this kind since 2005, and say that over that period alone, there have been hundreds of assaults outside mosques in the US.