New wave of attacks on Muslims in America
As ISIS steps up its attacks abroad, Muslims are increasingly being targeted here in the U.S. The United Arab Emirates has even warned its citizens traveling in the U.S. to avoid wearing traditional clothing.
In Avon, Ohio, body camera video shows police moving in on 41-year-old Ahmed al-Menhali at a hotel. A staffer claimed al-Menhali was on his cell phone acting suspiciously, so she texted her sister to dial 911.
"Hi, my sister works at a Fairfield Inn. She is a desk worker," the staffer's sister told the 911 operator. "She said there is a male in a full head dress with multiple disposable phones pledging his allegiance or something to ISIS."
Police searched and questioned al-Menhali, but found he had done nothing wrong. As he was released, he collapsed. The city's mayor and police chief issued a public apology.
"It is a very regrettable circumstance that occurred for you," the police chief said. "You should not have been put in that situation like you were."
The American ambassador to the United Arab Emirates also expressed regret over the situation: al-Menhali, an Emirati national, was wearing a traditional white kandura, or ankle-length robe, and headscarf at the time of the incident, according to the Associated Press.
It's the latest in a string of perceived anti-Muslim incidents over the past week in the U.S.
In Florida, 25-year-old Taylor Anthony Mazzanti was arrested for allegedly punching a man in the face and the head outside the mosque attended by Orlando shooter Omar Mateen.
In Minneapolis, two Muslim men were shot on their way to a mosque. That suspect is still on the loose.
In Brooklyn, New York, surveillance video shows two Muslim teenagers assaulted outside a mosque over the weekend. But the New York Police Department says the incident may have been a fight over a female.
Back in Cleveland, Julia Shearson is with the local council on American-Islamic Relations.
"We've documented a dramatic, unprecedented increase in the number of attacks - both against property and against the Muslim community," Shearson said.
In a statement, Marriott Hotels said it deeply regrets the incident and will be "following up to discuss diversity and inclusion training" for personnel at The Fairfield Inn where the incident happened.
