Police charge man after suspected anti-Muslim attack in Edinburgh | Crime Stories

Prime Minister Keir Starmer says ‘the suspect appears to be motivated by anti-Muslim hatred’.

Police in Scotland have charged a man in connection with a series of attacks in Edinburgh that UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said appeared to be motivated by anti-Muslim hatred.

Police said on Saturday that a 36-year-old man from Scotland was arrested on Friday and “is charged with a number of offenses which took place in Edinburgh on Friday, 19 June 2026”. Five people were injured in the attack.

Pictures posted online showed a burly man roaming the streets of Edinburgh with a large weapon, while another video appeared to show a man banging on the door of a pizzeria.

Another video has emerged showing a shirtless man shouting “defending the country” as he is being held by a police officer.

Police were called on Friday evening to reports of an incident in the city’s Sighthill area, where two men were injured.

Police said they received reports of incidents surrounding vendors in the west and north of the city.

The force said that at the same time, three other men were arrested in the area of ​​Telford Road and Leith Walk.

The victims, aged between 22 and 39, suffered multiple injuries, and three required medical treatment for wounds that did not appear life-threatening, police said.

Chief Constable Catriona Paton of Police Scotland said it was a “shocking” incident.

“I want to send a clear message to all of our communities that there is no discrimination or hatred based on religion in Scotland, which is only good when we stand together,” he said.

“The suspect appears to be motivated by anti-Muslim hatred. I will not allow this – he will face the full force of the law,” Starmer said.

Scotland’s First Minister, John Swinney, also condemned the violence posted online on X, saying: “I am deeply concerned by these incidents. There is no place for violence, racism or intolerance in our country.”

The Scottish Association of Mosques said two of the victims were attacked after prayers, while the Muslim Council of Britain said the community was “concerned” and condemned the “politicization of the whole community”.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said she was “shocked by the news of the attack in Edinburgh.

“There is no place for anti-violence against Muslims,” ​​he said. “I know that’s not who we are as a country.”