Sheffield driver took 'correct action' calling police after Muslim schoolgirl is 'throttled with her own hijab' on bus

Redana Al-Hadi said she was travelling home with her sister and a group of friends from Silverdale School when she was throttled with her own hijab.

The 14-year-old told how she suffered a fractured cheekbone and a bloody eye, while her sister sustained bruising to the inside of her leg.

According to the group Tell MAMA – which campaigns against anti-Muslim hate or Islamophobia – Redana’s family allege the bus driver failed to intervene to stop racist abuse before it escalated into violence.

A spokesperson for Stagecoach Yorkshire said: “We do not condone this kind of behaviour on our buses.

“Our driver took the correct action in calling the police at the time of the incident, and we have since provided the police with all the information we have to help with their investigation, including the CCTV from the bus.”

A spokesperson for South Yorkshire Police said enquiries into the incident were ongoing.

The spokesperson added: “The investigation is also currently undergoing a full review. This will include revisiting and speaking to witnesses.

“Officers remain in contact with the victim and her family and are keeping them updated.

“A 40-year-old woman, arrested at the scene, has been given a caution for assault, while a 44-year-old man remains on police bail as enquiries continue.

“Anyone with information, or who holds footage of the incident, is asked to call 101 or email [email protected], quoting incident number 601 of December 4.”

Redana, from Upperthorpe, was on a single decker bus bound for Ecclesfield when the attack happened shortly after 4.30pm on Wednesday, December 4.

Mobile phone footage was shared online and appears to show a woman embroiled in a row with the sisters and their friends before the argument spills out of the bus on to Ecclesall Road.

The woman can be seen on top of Redana as they are both on the ground.

Redana said the row initially started after a man on the bus began to mock the group’s accents and because the girls were wearing a hijab.