Muslims in Ottawa still feeling wounds of Quebec mosque shooting

Three years after a gunman killed six people and injured several others at a mosque in Quebec City, Muslims in Ottawa continue to feel reverberations of the tragedy.

IbrahimaBarry, Mamadou Tanou Barry,KhaledBelkacemi,AbdelkrimHassane, Azzedine Soufiane and AboubakerThabti were shot to death at the Quebec City Islamic Cultural Centre on Jan. 29, 2017.

Alexandre Bissonnettepleaded guiltyto six counts of first-degree murder and six counts of attempted murder in the attack. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison and his lawyers are currently appealing for a shorter sentence.

Community members told the CBC Wednesday the shooting has had a lasting impact.

Answers have been edited for length and clarity.

Majed Jarrar, interim imam,Ottawa Muslim Association

There's definitely an intrinsic feeling of anxiousness or alertness that people have [that wasn't there] before.

It is unfortunate that we have to tell the congregation to look for suspicious people approaching the mosque where the usual [approach] was to welcome everyone with open hands and an open heart.

It is unfortunate that we have to have measures for our [security] people who used to just care about the traffic control.

Hardship is part of every faith We will continue to come to the mosque and we will continue to open our doors to others.

Mustafa Farooq, executive director, National Council of Canadian Muslims

I'm wearing the green square [the same colour as the mosque's carpet] to stand in solidarity with the families of the victims of the Quebec City mosque attack.

A month or two ago, there was also a sentencing of a person who vandalized the Owen Sound mosque here in Ontario.

• Man arrested in connection with Owen Sound mosque vandalism

These attacks continue to happen against our community.

How do we make sure that when we remember Jan. 29, we're also thinking about how to attack hate and intoleranceof all sorts?

Anti-Semitism, anti-Sikh bigotry, anti-black racism, anti-Indigenous sentiment those are all things that we need to be thinking about today.

Hatred still a problem three years after Quebec City mosque attack, community says

5 years ago

Duration 0:56

Mustafa Farooq, executive director of the National Council of Canadian Muslims, says discrimination against Muslims and other minority groups is still rampant three years after the attack at a mosque in Quebec City.

Luqman Ahmed, religious missionary,Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama'at of Ottawa

The shooting in Quebec City came as a shock not just for Canadian Muslims but for all Canadians in general. Usually we hear of such incidents in other foreign countries.

I don't think anyone conceived of such an attack could happen here in our homeland.

When we compare Canada to other countries around the world, of course it is much better here, of course the level of tolerance in how people accept others is much better than what we see in other parts of the world, but at the same time, everything can be improved.

We have seen some attacks against Muslims, against Sikhs, against the Jewish communityand we can always do better.

The best way to commemorate the victims of the Quebec City attack is for us to make a resolve to know each other better.