A driver slams into a Muslim family, killing four people, in what Canadian PM calls ‘a terrorist attack’

By Rebekah Riess and Gregory Lemos, CNN

(CNN) Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday called the killing of four members of a Muslim family mowed down by a pickup truck “a terrorist attack.” “Their lives were taken in a brutal, cowardly, and brazen act of violence,” the Prime Minister said before the House of Commons. “This killing was no accident.

This was a terrorist attack motivated by hatred in the heart of one in our community.”The family of five was waiting at an intersection in the Canadian city of London on Sunday when a driver intentionally mounted the curb and struck them, killing four, because of their Islamic faith, officials said.

“There is evidence that this was a planned, premeditated act, motivated by hate. It is believed that these victims were targeted because they were Muslim,” said Detective Superintendent Paul Waight of the London Police.

“There is no known previous connection between the suspect and the victims.”Trudeau said the victims were two parents, two children and a grandmother. He identified them as Salman Afzaal, his wife Madiha, and their daughter Yumna.

Salman and Madiha’s son, Fayez, survived the attack. The grandmother was not identified.”We all hope that little boy will be able to heal from his injuries quickly even though we know he will have to live a very long time with the sadness, anger and incomprehension caused by the cowardly, Islamophobic attack,”

Trudeau said.

Officials had not identified the victims before Trudeau’s speech. A 74-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene Sunday night and the other four family members — a 46-year-old man, a 44-year-old woman, a 15-year-old girl, and a 9-year-old boy — were transported to the hospital by paramedic services.

The parents and their daughter died at the hospital, police said. The son is recovering in serious but non-life-threatening condition, officials said. A GoFundMe account set up on behalf of the family had raised more than $340,000 as of Tuesday afternoon.

“The horrific nature of the crimes perpetrated against the Salman family serve as a reminder of the long shadow of Islamophobia that is cast on the lives of peaceful Muslim families across the world,” the page said.