POLICE were called to Bolton town centre after a man shouted abusive comments at Muslims manning an Islamic information stand.

At around 3pm officers received reports about the abusive man in Victoria Square who was targeting the Islamic stand, where volunteers were sharing information about the religion.

Billa Ahmed, who runs community group Help the Homeless and Needy in Bolton and Manchester, said: “We’ve got this table here as we do every Sunday and we do it because we want to build bridges between us and other communities.

“We want to tell people that what they hear in the media or from other people, is not what Islam represents.

“Islam is a peaceful religion and it tells us that if you kill someone it’s as if you’ve killed the whole of mankind.

“I was equally disappointed and absolutely gutted about what happened yesterday in London. Even when the bombing happened in Manchester, we were out giving food to the hospitals. It’s just a shame that this man cannot understand.”