Leytonstone tube attack: 'You ain't no Muslim, Bruv' witness says he isn't Muslim either

A man whose "you ain't no Muslim, bruv" comment went viral as he filmed Muhayadin Mire being pinned to the floor after attacking tube passengers in Leytonstone has revealed he isn't a Muslim either. "John", 39, a security guard from north London, entered Leytonstone tube on Saturday, 5 December to find Mire allegedly attacking passengers.

As Mire was pinned to the floor John leaned over the barrier and shouted, "You ain't no Muslim, bruv." The hashtag #YouAintNoMuslimBruv became one of the most popular on Twitter. Prime Minister David Cameron repeated the comment for saying "it all much better than I ever could". John now says he fears reprisals from Islamic State (Isis) supporters, but his family support him and say he did the right thing.

"I just said how I felt, to be honest — that just came naturally," he told the Sunday Times. "This was the first time I've seen any major violence like that. It just happened so quick. I tend to say how I feel."

'This is for Syria'

During the incident 29-year-old Mire, from Leytonstone, punched a man to the ground before slashing at his neck with a small knife shouting: "This is for Syria." The victim, 56, who has chosen not to be identified, underwent five hours of surgery with a 5in (12 cm) wound and has now been discharged from hospital.

Mire allegedly threatened other passengers before being tasered three times and pulled to the ground by police.

"The police, they just jumped all over him," said John. "They were very aggressive, which was good. With someone like that, you can't take them lightly."

Mire is currently being held in a maximum security prison, will stand trial at the Old Bailey in March 2016 on a charge of attempted murder. Relatives of the Somali-born knifeman asked the police for help, after fearing the former Uber driver had become radicalised and had mental health issues.

Prosecutors are considering treating the attack as an act of terrorism but John, who says he has Muslim friends, says people like Mire don't represent Islam. "Isis should be wiped out, because they're not Muslims, because Muslims don't do that. It's as simple as that.

"For people to be like that, they've obviously got stone hearts, they don't care about society," he said. "They don't care about anyone. They're evil, pure evil."