AS RAMADAN drew to a close, Muslims reflected on what had been a difficult holy month for the community.

In the weeks leading up to it, the country was rocked by two Islamist terrorist attacks and just a week after it began, the Borough Market attack unfolded.

After Muslim communities across the country condemned the attacks, a group of worshippers near Finsbury Park Mosque were targeted by a terrorist who said he wanted to “kill all Muslims”.

After accepting an invitation to an iftar at Cann Hall Mosque in Leytonstone, I found worshippers to be resilient and open about their concerns.

The Grenfell Tower Fire affected many people at the mosque including Shahida who lost several members of her extended family in the disaster.

The 64-year-old who was born in Kenya to Pakistani parents and moved to the UK in 2001, said: “I was very sad when I heard the news. It hurt me a lot.

“But we know they didn’t suffer because they were on the phone to one of their relatives and they were telling them about the fire and then they said the smoke is coming and then they went silent.

“It made me feel better just praying for their souls. It is my comfort.”

The mother of three girls got married in her 20s and said the Islamic community is not immune to cultural changes that affect the rest of society.

One of her daughters, 30, is a computer graphic designer who owns her own flat. She chooses not to wear the hijab and is in no rush to find a husband.

Shadida said: “Times are different now. She is very independent and I don’t push her to do anything.”

A fellow worshipper pottering around with her two young children speaks about her experience as a veiled woman in western society.

The walls of the children’s room are decorated with hand-written notes giving tips for Ramadan which include ‘go a day without complaining’, ‘read to a younger sibling’ and ‘make someone smile’.

The mother-of-two from Wanstead does not wish to be named. She said: “I was 18 when I put the hijab on and it’s only in the last two years that there has been a negative reaction.

“I’ve gotten sworn at and each time it surprises me but then I just think this is how it is now. I feel a bit sad if I get shouted at in the car because I’m just a mum driving with my two kids.

“It worries me for my daughter. I will tell her about the benefits of wearing the hijab, like the modesty side of it, but it will be entirely her decision to wear it or not.”

As the men gather to break the fast and pray in the main room downstairs, the chairman of the mosque Shafi praises the local community for their response to the Grenfell disaster.

“We have a great relationship with our non-Muslim neighbours and we collected lots of food, toiletries and clothes for the victims of the fire. Everyone wanted to help,” he said.

“This is our community and if we have a good relationship with our neighbours they will protect us.

“After the attack in Finsbury Park we had to make sure we have enough security but we say to the people coming to the mosque to carry on as normal.”

But as the night draws to a close a concerned mother steps in to warn a group of people about the dangers of lingering outside the mosque.

As she heads for home with her children she says: “Please don’t stay out here, go inside. It’s not safe to do this anymore.”