Man charged in suspected anti-Muslim attacks on taxi and Uber rider in Edinburgh

A 38-year-old white Scottish man has been charged after a series of suspected anti-Muslim attacks in Edinburgh on Friday evening, according to police and witnesses. The assaults, which witnesses described as targeting Muslims and people of colour, began near a mosque in the west of Edinburgh and later continued on Leith Walk in the east.

Police Scotland confirmed late Saturday that the man was charged in connection with multiple incidents. Five men aged between 22 and 39 were injured, four of whom were taken to hospital. The force's counter-terrorism unit is involved in the investigation, but the incident has not yet been declared terrorism.

On Sunday afternoon, around 100 local residents, including several MSPs and activists, gathered on Leith Walk for a hastily arranged anti-racist rally. Nat Gorodnitski, a climate campaigner and co-organiser, said the aim was to show that the attack was an aberration and to reassure the community.

Hasan Eren, owner of Best Kebab House on Leith Walk, recounted seeing the attacker target a minicab, kicking it and smashing a window with a metal object, terrifying the passenger. The assailant then allegedly attacked an Uber cycle courier with a bladed weapon, striking him multiple times. Eren and others shouted at the attacker to stop. When police with stun guns arrived, the suspect threw away the blade, lay down on the road and surrendered without resistance. Social media footage appeared to show him shouting he was “protecting the country”.

Another local, Kenny, 53, who declined to give his full name, said the community is well integrated and multinational. Ava, 22, a woman of colour who works at a nearby restaurant, said she was scared by the hatred being whipped up, referencing similar incidents in Belfast and Southport.

Police initially received reports of two men injured near Broomhouse mosque in Sighthill, both taken to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. Three more men were injured on Telford Road and later on Leith Walk. Footage from west Edinburgh showed another minicab being attacked. In Craigleith, a driver allegedly hit a food courier on a bike before chasing them with a large blade.

First Minister John Swinney said he will meet Edinburgh's Muslim community on Monday. “There is no place for race-based or faith-based violence in Scotland,” he stated, condemning the attacks as “heinous” and the allegations of anti-Muslim hatred as “abhorrent”. He called for unity and assured communities that his government would tackle all forms of violence, division and prejudice.

SNP MSP Ben Macpherson said Leith is a place of pluralism and the community would not let the incident disrupt that. Scottish Greens MSP Kate Nevens said the attack was horrible and felt like it was hitting at the heart of Edinburgh, but emphasised the neighbourhood's love and generosity of spirit.