Corbyn egg attack: Man arrested on suspicion of assault after Labour leader hit by egg

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A man has been arrested on suspicion of assault after Jeremy Corbyn was hit by an egg in north London.

The Labour leader was allegedly targeted after visiting Finsbury Park Mosque on Sunday afternoon.

It is believed that Mr Corbyn was sitting chatting with community leaders when the attacker approached him from behind and hit him over the head with the egg.

The man was reportedly overheard to say "when you vote you get what you vote for" and is thought to be a pro-Brexit protester.

A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said: “On Sunday, 3 March at around 3.52pm an egg was thrown at a member of parliament.

“The incident occurred on Seven Sister’s Road.

“A 41-year-old man was quickly detained by officers on scene and arrested on suspicion of assault.

“He is currently in custody at a north London police station.”

Mr Corbyn had been taking part in ”Visit My Mosque Day”, an annual campaign encouraging more than 250 mosques across the UK to hold open days for people from all faiths.

He was presented with a bunch of red roses on his arrival at Muslim Welfare House in Seven Sisters Road before meeting children taking part in activities at the community centre.

The Labour leader was not harmed by the egging and continued with his constituency engagements.

His predecessor Ed Miliband was hit by an egg during a walkabout in Southampton in 2012.

Other politicians to be targeted in the same way include David Cameron, Baroness Warsi and George Galloway.

In 2001 John Prescott famously punched an egg-throwing protester during a visit to Rhyl in north Wales.

Additional reporting by Press Association