Shocking video shows Morrisons shopper unleash racist tirade at Muslim saying they were ‘terrorists’
Zubair Munsif was told that before Muslims moved to the UK 'there were no terrorists'
AN old man's racist rant at a young British Muslim has gone viral after supermarket staff were forced to step in.
Zubair Munsif, 32, of Walthamstow, London, posted video footage on social media of the verbal assault he claims he endured while shopping at his local Morrisons on Saturday.
The video has since been viewed more than 275,000 times and a spokesman for Morrisons said the man, who can be seen shouting and gesticulating in the video, has now been banned from the store.
Zubair, an assistant merchandiser who was born in Bristol and grew up in Cardiff, said: "I had just bumped into an elderly family friend who has a beard and wears traditional clothing and after saying goodbye I heard this voice shouting "are you Muslim?".
"I turned around because I had no idea what was going on and he told me to 'sod off' – I was completely taken aback.
"I wanted to film it not to be a bully, but because I want people to know that this stuff happens.
"This guy thought it was okay to shout his racist opinion in my face without any thought – that is completely wrong.
"I have lived in the UK my whole life, I've been in London alone for nine years, where does he want me to go?"
Related stories
"What if he'd done this to my parents or my grandparents?
"Everyone is entitled to their opinion but to approach someone and without any provocation shout it at them in a violent way is not okay.
"We have to educate our kids and show them that this is not the way to handle things. Instead of getting agitated, converse with people and try to work through any misunderstandings."
Zubair said he decided to film the exchange as he felt it was important for people to see.
In the video, which has been shared by 3,371 people, the man can apparently be seen shouting at Zubair and telling him "he doesn't like Muslims" and that before Muslims moved to the UK "there were no terrorists".
Zubair, who has run the London marathon twice for charity and volunteered at the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics, can be heard explaining that he is a "good person" who "contributes to society".
But the other man continues his rant and at one point knocks Zubair's phone out of his hands before a member of Morrisons staff intervenes.
Zubair said Morrisons were "amazing" – offering him a free cup of tea – and said since posting the video he has received hundreds of messages of support and even apologies.
The 32-year-old, whose grandparents moved to the UK in the 1970s, said he feels this incident is a sign of the growing tensions surrounding immigration as the EU referendum approaches.
Zubair said: "The whole time I tried to talk to him calmly because I wanted him to understand that not all Muslims are terrorists.
"I wanted to uphold the British values I have been raised with – values he seems to have completely forgotten about.
"As much as I know not everyone is racist, after such an awful thing it was reassuring to have staff at Morrisons intervene and be so helpful. And everyone who has reached out online has been incredibly supportive.
"There is a growing anti-immigration rhetoric and scare-mongering from politicians and the media and it all links back to the crisis in the Middle East so people are taking it out on Muslims.
"I hope it doesn't escalate if we vote to leave the EU bit I think it will do and that scares me."
He added: "It is an attack on my faith and we are not all bad people or terrorists. Our religion at the moment is suffering a massive crisis where it is being hijacked by people who have been brainwashed.
"But I had family in Manchester when the IRA bombed the Arndale and we didn't go out attacking all Irish people."
A spokesman for the London Metropolitan Police confirmed the incident had been reported to them by Morrisons.
A Morrisons spokesperson said: "We have a zero tolerance approach to all forms of antisocial behaviour in our stores.
"The customer was immediately removed by the store team and is now banned from the store."
We pay for your stories! Do you have a story for The Sun Online news team? Email us at [email protected] or call 0207 782 4368.