THE people of Dunfermline showed love triumphs over hate in a show of solidarity against a vile campaign to attack Muslims.

Dunfermline Central Mosque invited the community in for a cuppa and a chat on Tuesday in response to a sickening ‘Punish A Muslim Day’ social media post that swept the UK and encouraged people to commit acts of sectarian violence.

The Woodmill Road venue was packed with people who wanted to stand side by side with their neighbours and make a point that hatred and intolerance would not win.

Sid Akbar, assistant secretary of the Dunfermline Islamic Centre, told the Press: “The whole thing was amazing. We wanted to counter hate with love and not let ‘them’ dictate how our society works.

"That’s exactly what happened. The community do not want us to feel alone and they made a point of making known that not everybody shares those views.

"All our volunteers were just left buzzing and that personally warmed my heart. That post did not work and in fact it completely achieved the opposite.”

The post promoted April 3 as “Punish A Muslim Day” in which assailants would be awarded points based on the severity of their attacks. Across the UK cities staged anti-racism rallies condemning the hate and many Mosques staged events similar to those in Dunfermline.

Last week members of Dunfermline Central Mosque, along with other faith groups, MSPs and police, met at the Scottish Parliament to discuss the issue.

“The aim of the ‘Put the kettle on’ was quintessential Scottish,” said Sid. “When we are down, as Scots we tend to say ‘Ach, never mind, let’s put the kettle on and have a chat’.

“We only had four days to put the word out but we’re so glad we did it and everyone has said we need to do it again. All of it was positive and the perceptions that people had of Muslims was completely shattered.

“It was brilliant getting to know the community and lots of friendship were made.

“I’m kind of lost for words by it all.”