British female Muslim lawmaker pelted with eggs
AFP
LONDON - One of Britain's most powerful Muslim women was pelted with eggs Monday by a group of men who accused her of not being a proper Muslim and of supporting the deaths of Muslims in Afghanistan.
Sayeeda Warsi, a lawmaker from the main opposition Conservatives, was campaigning in Luton, north of London, when the men confronted her and started shouting abuse, her spokesman said.
Sayeeda Warsi
"But they just carried on screaming and shouting at her."
Baroness Warsi, shown in television footage with egg in her hair and on her jacket, later described the men as "a bunch of idiots who do not represent the wider Muslim community."
"I stood up to them and challenged them to a proper debate, but they weren't prepared to listen," she said.
One of the protesters told the BBC that he and his group were "against everything she stands for".
"She is not a practising Muslim. Clearly by looking at her she does not represent Muslims," he said.
Warsi, a lawyer and Conservative spokeswoman for community cohesion and social action, was named as one of the country's most powerful Muslim women in "The Power List".
The list, chosen by a panel led by the chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, was set up to celebrate high performers in business, the arts, media, voluntary and public sectors.
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