Al Azhar on Sunday strongly condemned an attack on a Muslim prayer hall in France's Corsica.

Demonstrators ransacked a Muslim prayer hall and attempted to burn copies of the Quran on the French island of Corsica Friday, police said, following a night of violence that left two firefighters injured.

In a statement, Al Azhar expressed regret over chanting racist slogans against Arabs and Muslims from those who claim concern for the rights and freedoms.

The statement called on the French government to take further measures to protect the Islamic and non-Islamic houses of worship from such attacks.

A crowd vandalized a Muslim prayer hall and set fire to copies of the Quran on the French island of Corsica, police said, in an attack condemned by the government.

The violence came on Friday amid heightened security measures for the Christmas holiday, and nationwide fears after the November 13 attacks in Paris killed 130 people.

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls wrote on Twitter that the break-in in the city of Ajaccio was "an unacceptable desecration".

Source: MENA