A little boy’s act of kindness to a mosque in Texas that was vandalised following the Paris attacks has been widely praised.
Jack Swanson heard from his mother that the Islamic Center of Pflugerville in the south central US state had been targeted and decided to empty the contents of his piggy bank to help them out.
The seven-year-old donated all of his savings to the mosque having got upset when his mother explained to him what had happened.
Several mosques have reportedly been targeted by vandals in the US following the terror attacks in France which left 129 dead.
Torn pages of the Koran covered in faeces were left outside the entrance of the mosque, authorities said.
"We were talking in the car how someone smeared poop on their church and that was a really, really awful thing to do. We had a good conversation about [what] churches are for and why everybody’s churches are important,” the boy’s mother, Laura Swanson, told KXAN.
"I think it’s really important to get kids involved and let them know what the important stuff really is."
Faisal Naeem, a board member at the mosque, praised the youngster’s thoughtful gesture.
"It's 20 bucks, but coming from Jack collecting his pennies it's worth 20 million bucks to me and to our community," he told KXAN.
"This gives me hope because this means it's not one versus the other.
"He or she, whoever did this, or they, doesn't represent anybody but themselves. If I find the guy or girl who did this I would welcome them with open arms, to have a conversation with them. If this person wants to come and talk to us about why he did it and how we are not connected to what is happening in Paris or the Middle East."
He added: "Last thing we want is anybody: my kids, anybody's kids, Muslims, non-Muslims, doesn't matter, getting hurt."
Telegraph