KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian police said Wednesday they had arrested eight people over the firebombing of a church, the first in a spate of attacks that has escalated ethnic tensions.
Eleven churches across Malaysia have been pelted with Molotov cocktails, stones and paint in violence triggered by a court ruling overturning a ban on non-Muslims using “Allah” as a translation for “God.”
The High Court on Dec. 31 ruled in favor of the Catholic Herald newspaper which has used “Allah” as a translation for “God” in its Malay-language section. Muslims argue that Christian publications in Malaysia use the word inappropriately and with an intention to mislead the public.
The government has said that the word should be used only by Muslims, and that although it is commonly used by Christians in the Middle East and in neighboring Indonesia, the situation in Malaysia is different. The ruling has been suspended pending an appeal.
Federal criminal investigation chief Bakri Zinin said police were investigating whether the eight accused over the first firebombing, which gutted the ground floor of a church, were also linked to the other attacks.
“Eight people have been arrested and they are believed to be involved in the arson attack on the (Metro Tabernacle) church. They have been remanded for seven days to facilitate investigations,” he told reporters.
Bakri said he believed police had “solved this case.” “So please I advise the public, don’t do something that will threaten racial and religious harmony.”
The three-story Metro Tabernacle church in suburban Kuala Lumpur, part of the Assemblies of God movement, was set ablaze on Jan. 8. Witnesses saw arsonists smash windows and throw fuel into the building.
Church spokesman Peter Yeow welcomed the arrests, and said the congregation believed “the situation was under control.”
“We have put this behind us. We are trying to get out of the limelight and go on with our lives and relocate our church rather than look at who is to blame. We will let the police do their job,” he said.
Bakri said the first of the eight to be arrested was detained on Tuesday after seeking hospital treatment for burns on his hand and chest.
The group were all aged between 21 and 26, and included three relatives — two brothers and their uncle. The remainder were all friends. A police statement said the eight were Muslim Malays.
