As officials in the Welsh capital of Cardiff boast a unique state of ethnic harmony, Mustsfa El-Menshawy delves deeper for inspecting details In one of the oldest mosques in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, there is a feeling of tension. The tension also hangs over this small district predominantly populated by Arab and Muslim immigrants. After Friday prayers, most worshippers express their condemnation as well as fear they could be the target of knee-jerk revenge attacks by racist whites after the deadly blasts, claimed by an Islamist group, that rocked London this week killing more than 50 people. "Shortly after the news of the London blasts, my young daughter clad in hijab --the traditional Islamic code of dress -- was yelled at and threatened by a group of people who told her to `Go home`," a middle-aged man giving his name as Al-Huja told Al-Ahram Weekly in the Cardiff Islamic Centre. Although Al-Huja referred to racial feelings against Muslims before the London blasts, he fears the worst is yet to come. He says vengeful feelings could also release hostility against the estimated 22,000 Muslims living in Cardiff. He does not rule out possible violence or random arrests similar to those reported in the aftermath of 9/11. After the attacks on US targets in 2001, a woman ripped off a hijab of a Muslim schoolgirl and a mosque was stoned and death threats received in Swansea, 40 miles west of Cardiff. After the London blasts this week, the Muslim Council of Britain said it had already received more than 1,000 e-mails containing threats and messages of hate. Several contained the sentiment: "It is now war on Muslims throughout Britain." However, no such incidents have so far been reported in Cardiff or in Wales, home to an estimated 50,000 Muslims in total. It may be because of official assurances from police will deal robustly with any hate crimes following the bombings. Another explanation -- voiced by many Muslim inhabitants -- is that Cardiff has always been a better place to live with a more tolerant population and less discrimination than other areas in the UK. "I was in London at the time of the blasts. I immediately thought: 'I have to rush back to Cardiff where it is safe to live'," says Zahera Harb, a Lebanese political researcher at Cardiff University. Harb says her feelings are widely shared by other ethnic minorities in Cardiff. The city was the first British city to get Muslim immigrants in the late 19ths century during its heyday as the world's largest coal-exporting port. The first purpose-built mosque in Britain was built in Cardiff in 1947 and the following year the town hosted Britain's first-ever Muslim conference. The city now boasts 12 mosques to accommodate the growing number of Muslim immigrants, mostly Somalis and Asians. Unlike most other regions of the UK where Muslims are relatively isolated, it is remarkable to find Muslims in Cardiff living side by side with old Cardiff residents in several mixed areas --thanks to official cooperation and relative public receptiveness.
