Nadine Osman

A pig’s head was dumped near a Muslim prayer room at the University of Western Australia in Perth. Doctoral student Majdi Fal found the head in a toilet near the prayer room on December 4.

A police spokeswoman said the matter was being investigated and it was important not to jump to conclusions about motive as the toilet was in a public space.

However, a spokesman for UWA described the incident as an “unprecedented display of Islamophobia”.

He told The Muslim News, “The university is very saddened by this deplorable act. Acts like this are designed only to incite religious and racial hatred. We would like to reinforce that UWA strives to support a culturally inclusive and tolerant campus community and the university will offer help and support to our Muslim students at this time.”

In November last year, the head, limbs and guts of a pig were dumped at the Masjid Ibrahim Islamic mosque in the Perth suburb of Southern River. The Ar-Rukun mosque in Rockingham had been targeted last month when vandals had splashed white paint on the entrance.