London Woman's hijab pulled off in racist attack

The Metropolitan police launched an investigation into the incident which took place in September.

Metropolitan Police were appealing for witnesses on Sunday (9 October) in response to a "racially motivated assault" which took place in Haringey, north London, on 28 September at around 7.30PM, it said.

The victim, a woman in her 20s who has not been named, was crossing the road by the College of Haringey, Enfield & North East London, which is between Seven Sisters and Tottenham Hale tube stations, at the time of the attack.

According to a statement issued by the Met, the victim was approached from behind at around by two men thought to be in their late 20s or early 30s, who pulled down her hijab before fleeing the scene towards Pelham Road N15.

Though the victim was not hurt in the assault, she was said to be "shocked and distressed".

Speaking on behalf of the Haringey Community Safety Unit, Detective Constable Ben Cousin said: "This was a shocking attack in broad daylight in the middle of a busy street.

"Racially and religiously motivated crimes will not be tolerated I would appeal to anyone who witnessed this attack to contact police."

The police described the first suspects as a 5ft 6in white man, with blond or ginger shaved hair and stubble. He was wearing a burgundy coloured hooded top and carrying a Tesco bag in his hand.

The second suspect was said to be of Mediterranean appearance, who was clean shaven with spiky hair and wearing a grey hooded top.

The attack follows a surge in hate crime since the 23 June vote to leave the European Union, which some believe has legitimised latent racist views held by members of the British public.

The Mayor of London's office recently released statistics that showed a 16% rise in hate crime in the capital in the 12 months leading up to August 2016.

The rise in post-Brexit hate crime has been evident in many parts of the country, with Muslim women apparently feeling particularly vulnerable.

In August, a pregnant Muslim woman endured a horrific ordeal in the car park of a Co-op supermarket, in which she was kicked in the stomach causing her to miscarry her unborn child.

Anyone with information about the attack in Haringey should contact Haringey Police via 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.