Muslims protect Midnight Mass

A GROUP of Muslims volunteered to guard a church in Lens during Midnight Mass in a sign of unity and solidarity at Christmas.

About a dozen Muslims gathered to protect the church, after French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve wrote to police earlier in December to warn of a possible threat to Christmas church services, following the Paris terror attacks.

The 200 churchgoers expressed their appreciation, with the local pastor ending his prayer by giving the Muslim volunteers a Bethlehem Light of Peace.

Abdelkader Aoussedj, head of the Pas-de-Calais union of Muslim citizens, said the "strong gesture" showed that Muslims were respectful, adding: “We would have liked this to happen everywhere else, especially at a time when Muslims are stigmatised. That is the true Islam. It’s normal that Muslims respect other religions."

Interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve said he had "respect" for the Muslims' symbolic gesture in Lens.