SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - A leader of Yellowknife's Muslim community is upset over what he calls an act of hate against his faith.

Nur Ali, vice-president of the Yellowknife Islamic Centre, said he was appalled when he discovered a picture depicting the prophet Muhammad, the founder of the Islamic religion, on the door of the city's mosque Monday morning.

"It's very insulting," he said. "It's unacceptable to make an image of our prophet Muhammad."

Most Muslims consider it blasphemous to depict Muhammad.

Ali discovered the picture early Monday morning when heading to the mosque for morning prayer.

The picture showed what he described as a caucasian-looking man with bulging eyes with "Muhammad" written underneath.

He contacted the RCMP and reported the incident as a hate crime.

The RCMP took away the picture as evidence.

"This person knew what they were doing," said Ali. "To go on the computer, print it off a website and bring it down here, that tells you this person has knowledge of what he's doing and it means he has hatred in his heart and it doesn't belong in Yellowknife."

He was also surprised something like this could occur in a city which he views as an otherwise open-minded community.

"This is not Yellowknife, we can't take this," said Ali. "I'm from Toronto, in big cities you can expect it to happen, but in a small city like Yellowknife I was not expecting it."

RCMP spokesperson Const. Todd Scaplen said police have no suspects and are still in the initial stages of the investigation. Whether or not the incident can be classified as a hate crime the RCMP still has to investigate the nature of the offence, said Scaplen. Other possible charges that could be laid include mischief or inciting hatred in a public place.

This was not the first time the mosque was desecrated. In 2001, shortly after the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Centre, the sign that hung in front of the mosque was torn down.

Depictions of the prophet Muhammad have stirred controversy around the world in recent years. Most notably, the publication in 2005 of 12 editorial cartoons depicting Muhammad, including one showing a bomb in his turban, led to protests and riots throughout the muslim world.

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