Bengalis vs. Moroccans

This report concerns an unusual enricher vs. enricher incident in London. The young man who was killed was a Moroccan, and his girlfriend his alleged murderers are Bengalis.

The victim was almost certainly a Muslim, based on the names of family members and the fact that he was Moroccan. Bengalis, however, are an ethnic group that straddles Bangladesh and the state of Assam in India. Most Bengalis in Bangladesh are Muslims, but the majority of their counterparts in India are Hindus. Without any additional information, there’s no way to determine which group the purported killers are from.

So this may or may not be an internecine Muslim conflict. In any case, it serves as a reminder that the different immigrant groups in the UK are pitted not only against native Britons, but also against one another.

According to This is London:

Strictly Star Mourns Thames Victim in ‘Race Attack’

A cousin of Strictly Come Dancing’s Laila Rouass who drowned in the Thames may have been killed in a racist attack, his family claimed today.

The body of Ibrahim Gharib, 20, was pulled from the Shadwell Basin, near Garnet Street in east London, on Friday morning.

Relatives today alleged that the plumber was attacked by a group of men the previous night while walking with his 17-year-old girlfriend.

His family, who are Moroccan, today described him as an “incredibly loving man” and claimed he was attacked by a group of Bengali men because of his relationship with the girl, who is said to be of Bengali descent.

The girl suffered a head injury during the attack but a Scotland Yard spokesman said it was not yet clear how she sustained it.

Actress Rouass, 36, who starred in Footballers’ Wives and Primeval, said her family were “devastated”. She added: “It’s a terrible waste of life.”

Emergency services including police, paramedics and a marine unit were called to the scene on Thursday night after several people dialled 999 to say a man had fallen in.

Detectives have been focusing on whether the victim suffered any injuries, and whether he fell in the water or was pushed. They are treating the death as suspicious and have appealed for witnesses.

A 20-year-old man has been arrested and bailed. Mr Gharib’s nephew Imad Souma, 18, said he had met the girl he was with two weeks ago and claimed a group of Bengali men from Poplar attacked him.

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He added: “There is no way this was a random attack. We think they did it because he was with a Bengali girl. They wanted him dead. They were jealous and angry that a Moroccan was with the girl.

“There is a postcode war going on between gangs in this area. What happened to Ibrahim might have been something to do with that. We need to know who did this.

“He was a fantastic person and he’s never been in trouble in his life.” Mr Souma said his uncle was an accomplished boxer who trained at Repton Gym in Bethnal Green. He lived in Shadwell with his parents. They were too upset to speak today.

Mr Gharib’s older sister Fatima said: “We are all devastated and in total shock. Ibrahim was a fantastic person. We can’t understand how anyone could have done this to him.”

For a complete listing of previous enrichment news, see The Cultural Enrichment Archives.

Hat tip: JP.