30-3-2024 (KUALA LUMPUR) A Malaysian convenience store was attacked with a Molotov cocktail on Saturday following the controversy surrounding the sale of socks depicting the word “Allah.” The incident occurred after the top executives of the store chain were charged with hurting religious sentiments.
Photos of the socks displaying the word “Allah” being sold at a KK Super Mart store sparked outrage among Muslims on social media, who found the association of the sacred term with feet offensive.
This marked the second attack on a KK outlet within a week. Religion is a sensitive subject in Malaysia, where the majority of the population consists of Muslim ethnic Malays, comprising two-thirds of the country’s 34 million people, alongside significant ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities.
KK Super Mart’s founder and chairman, Chai Kee Kan, and his wife, Loh Siew Mui, a company director, were charged with wounding religious feelings on Tuesday. Three representatives of the store’s supplier also faced the same charges, as reported by the state news agency Bernama. All of them pleaded not guilty.
In the early hours of Saturday, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at a KK outlet in the Kuantan district of Pahang state, according to Wan Mohamad Zahari Wan Busu, the Kuantan police chief, in a phone interview with Reuters.
This attack followed a petrol bomb incident at another KK Super Mart store in Perak state on Tuesday, as reported by Bernama.
The authorities have yet to identify a suspect in Saturday’s attack but are conducting investigations in the area and reviewing security footage for potential evidence, stated Wan Mohamad Zahari.
Although the police believe the attack is linked to the sale of the controversial socks, they continue to investigate the matter.
Reports indicate that the attack resulted in some items in the storefront catching fire, but store workers swiftly extinguished the flames.
KK Super Mart, the second-largest mini-mart chain in the country, issued an apology regarding the socks, emphasizing that it considers the matter seriously and has taken immediate action to halt their sale.
Furthermore, the company has filed a lawsuit against the sock supplier, alleging sabotage and damage to its brand reputation.
