Islamophobia rising? Muslim 'stabbed' outside mosque in Texas, shot on way to hospital

TEXAS: A Muslim man was stabbed outside a mosque in Houston while on his way to the mosque to offer prayers, and was later shot twice when he was being taken to hospital in an ambulance for treatment of his injuries.

Worshippers at a Houston mosque say the man was ambushed by three people before he could get inside the doors.

Mohammed Imaduddin, a spokesperson for the mosque, told Fox 26's Sally MacDonald that the victim, a doctor, was ambushed by three people, who shot and stabbed him.

The victim had parked along the street and was walking towards the mosque when he was approached by three people on foot, according to Imaduddin.

“It is very scary right now given the current political climate,” Imaduddin added.

"From what I hear, this is the third incident this week in the Houston area involving a Muslim getting shot. This is a community place, we have kids that come here, we have people young and old that come here."

During the attack, the victim was able to throw his cell phone at someone inside the entrance of the mosque and asked them to call 911.

He was being taken by ambulance to the hospital for treatment when at one point, someone allegedly pulled out a gun and shot the man.

According to the reports, the doctor was shot twice and will remain in ICU for 24 hours.

The incident comes the day after another Muslim man was beaten outside a mosque in Florida.

Hate crimes and threats against Muslims have escalated in the months since high-profile terror attacks took place in Paris and San Bernardino, California.