A Christian man who converted from Islam more than a decade ago, but has since lived in fear in his Bradford, England, home from his mostly Muslim neighbors – who have labeled him and his family members "blasphemers" – was beaten by pickaxe-wielding and hooded thugs in a brazen daytime attack.
Nissar Hussain, the father of six, was struck by two men in an unprovoked attack just outside his home, suffering a broken kneecap, a fractured forearm and a concussion, Breitbart reported. Police are investigating the incident as a religious hate crime, in part because the man has complained in the past several times of receiving threats from his Muslim neighbors, due to his 1996 conversion to Christianity.
Video captured the attack, and shows Hussain walking toward his car while two men approach. The hooded men attack with a small ax, along with their fists.
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"I felt like I was holding on for dear life," said Hussain, to the Daily Mail. "It all happened so fast that I was unable to react. I remember just walking out of the gate and putting my foot off the curb. Next thing, I saw was a pickaxe coming towards me. On instinct, I tried to cover my head with my arms, but the force of the blow knocked me back and my heel clipped the curb to send me to the ground. I also hit my head on the wall, which gave me a concussion, but I was still conscious. I continued to block their shots to my head with my arms while on the ground, but as soon as they realized that, they just began attacking my legs."
A third man pulled up in a car and let in the two attackers, and all three fled the scene, Breitbart reported.
Hussain said he and his family have been targeted by Muslim members of their community since 1996, when they switched from the Islam faith to Christianity. They eventually took part in a documentary to speak about the challenges and difficulties of leaving the Islam faith for Christianity, and the persecution grew worse, he said, Breitbart reported.
"This last year has been the most terrifying," he said, the news outlet reported. "My family has to be brave as soon as they leave the front door. This country is a civilized society and we are not in Pakistan. We have the right to go about our daily lives and not be threatened because of our religion."
Just this past May, Hussain wrote to one of his elected officials, begging for help.
He wrote, Breitbart said: "My family and I endured 'hell' by my fellow Pakistani young men in the form of persecution which entailed assault, daily intimidation, criminal damage to property, smashing house windows and also three vehicles written off whilst the community looked on and even endorsed this. One of [the] vehicles was torched outside my home."
He complained how police turned a deaf ear to his expressed concerns and even told him to "stop trying to be a crusader." Breitbart reported.