(18 Aug 2016) A group of religious and community leaders gathered Thursday on the steps of New York's city hall to call for an end to violence. Many said that the recent killing of an imam and his friend should be classified as a hate crime.
Islamic leaders called for an end to the anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant rhetoric they say is coming from Republican Party candidates.
Family members of both victims were present and expressed their gratitude for the work of the NYPD but also called for the investigation into the motive to continue.
Authorities have not said what prompted the Aug. 13 killings of Imam Maulana Alauddin Akonjee and his friend Thara Uddin, which occurred a few blocks away from a Queens mosque. They've declined to label the slayings a hate crime.
Prosecutors have called the killings an "assassination," and charged a man of Hispanic origin, Oscar Morel, with murder. He has, through his lawyer, denied being the shooter.
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