It would be almost impossible to comprehend the mentality of those responsible for erecting flags bearing Nazi symbols outside a mosque in west Belfast this week.
There was nothing spontaneous about this appalling act which was carried out with the intention only to provoke fear and intimidation.
It required a significant degree of planning both to source the vile flags and to place them on lampposts at a carefully chosen target in the dead of night.
Police are rightly treating the erection of the flags, which bore the swastika and symbol of the SS, as a racially-motivated hate crime.
It can only be imagined how those using the Iqraa mosque in Dunmurry felt when confronted with the hate-filled display on Wednesday morning.
They were first noticed by parents bringing children to a summer school at the community complex, who will be understandably concerned about who has been monitoring their activities and what possible threat is posed to their families.
The imam and chairperson of the mosque, Jamal Iweida, expressed disgust at the flags as well as alarm about the safety of the children visiting the site.
One member of the community also recalled the appalling attack by a white supremacist on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand which killed 51 people in a shooting rampage in 2019.
Politicians have been quick to condemn the flags and express solidarity to all who worship at the mosque.
Mr Iweida has also generously acknowledged the support shown by neighbours and those from further afield, while anti-racism activists will hold a rally in Dunmurry tomorrow which will firmly demonstrate that those responsible do not speak for people in the area.
It is vital now that police are given every support to ensure those responsible for this despicable act are apprehended and a strong signal sent out by the criminal justice system that such actions will not be tolerated.
And while erecting a Nazi flag is perhaps the most egregious example of such a hate crime, the same principles should apply to those who erect symbols or express racist or sectarian slogans at any places of worship.
It is a sad reality that flags are routinely used to intimidate, cause offence or mark out territory. The flags in Dunmurry were thankfully quickly taken down, but it should not prove any more difficult to remove similar displays in other settings.
