A MAN stabbed on his way home from mosque first thought he had been “punched really hard” in the stomach.

The man, was walking back from Qur’ani Murkuz Trust in Mulberry Way, South Woodford, when he was attacked for refusing to give two teenage boys a cigarette just before 11pm on Tuesday (February 14).

He made it home to Colvin Gardens, Wanstead - but when he took off his jacket he saw blood and realised he had been stabbed.

The man, in his 30s who is married with children, was taken to hospital with serious but non-life threatening injuries.

Saqib Khan has been going to the victim’s mosque in South Woodford for 18 years.

The father-of-two, of Camden Road, Wanstead, says he was “shocked” to hear about the attack at Friday prayers this week (February 17).

He said: “I spoke to one of the elders at the mosque and he told me what happened.

“The man who was stabbed volunteers there, helping clean up and things.

“He was on his way home from the mosque when he was attacked by these men.”

The 43-year-old says he feels "dejected and in a state of despair" after the attack, and has been flooded with comments of concern for the victim and his family, shock and disbelief.

He added: “I’ve lived in Wanstead for 16 years and always felt completely safe walking around here - that total security is gone.

“There’s bound to be an element of fear now, a feeling of needing to look over your shoulder.

“That might break people’s idea that Wanstead is some kind of nirvana, but it goes to show we all need to keep our wits about us, even here.

“What adds to to the anxiety for those of us with ethnic minnority heritage is the sheer rise in number of attacks since the EU referendum.

"Overall the worrying thing we're left with is that all of us, regardless of race, will need to be more vigilant walking around our community.

Qur’ani Murkuz Imam Dr Mohammed Fahim is believed to have visited the victim in hospital this week, who is now out of intensive care.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "The victim was approached by two teenage boys who asked for a cigarette.

"When the victim declined he was stabbed in the stomach."

Officers are investigating but there have not been any arrests made.