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Ramadan Arrest Ban?
British cops' fury as authorities order no arrests during Muslim prayer times
Officers in the Greater Manchester Police force are reportedly angry following an internal email instructing police to avoid arresting suspects while Muslims are at prayer during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
According to a report in The Observer, officers were send a memo listing prayer times, and told not to follow up arrest warrants during these times for reasons of "religious sensitivity."
A spokesman for the police later clarified the issue, claiming that the initial email had been unclear - instead of waiting for crooks to finish their prayers, he said, the police were merely being asked to behave respectfully and sensitively.
Moreover, he pointed out that the guidelines applied to arrest warrants, not on-the-spot arrests (so, in other words, if a Muslim is committing an offence while he should be at prayer, he can still be nicked).
