By Barry Ellsworth
TRENTON, Canada (AA) - Canadian police are hunting a man who sprayed a Muslim taxi driver in the face with an unknown substance.
The incident occurred early Tuesday as the driver was stopped at a red light in the downtown area of Toronto.
The substance caused a burning sensation and the driver was taken to hospital and had his eyes flushed out. In an interview with CTV News, Bilal, the news outlet agreed to only use his first name, described what happened.
“I pulled down my window a little bit and asked, ‘Do you need a cab?’” he said during the interview Wednesday.
“He just looking to me and say, ‘You are Muslim?’ I say, ‘Yeah, I am Muslim.’ And he (throws) something on my eyes and using f-words.”
Balil said he called the emergency 911 number and was rushed to hospital. He was to be checked later to see if any permanent damage was done to his eyes.
Toronto police released a description of the subject late Wednesday and asked for the public’s assistance in apprehending the culprit.
The National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) said it was aware of the crime.
The NCCM, which said it is the largest Muslim advocacy group in Canada, said such incidents are rising.
“Islamophobic incidents are spiking all across Canada,” it wrote on X.
Toronto police said hate crime calls have increased dramatically by 132% since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict in early October.
In the first three days of the conflict, between Oct. 7 to Oct. 9, police told CTV News they responded to 14 hate crime incidents.
There were only five during the same period last year and one in 2021.
“It is time we stemmed this tide of hate,” said NCCM.