Harrison Mcclary / Reuters

Friday prayers at the newly opened Islamic Center of Murfreesboro in Murfreesboro, Tenn., on Aug. 10. The center was the subject of protests and court action by groups opposed to the mosque since construction began two years ago. The mosque opened in the final days of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.

On Sunday and Monday, when Muslims will celebrate the end of Ramadan, even many who are less observant the rest of the year will be at mosques to pray. But many worshippers will celebrate amid heightened security after a recent spike in attacks on mosques and other places of worship.

"We recommend a security guard during prayer hours,” said Abed Ayoub, legal director of the nonprofit American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, or ADC. "Take measures and use common sense. Keep an eye on people who don’t seem to fit in. We ask them to install video cameras at the doors and throughout the mosque. Limit access to areas such as the kitchen, furnace or storage where someone could hide."

This is not the first time that Muslims have been advised to exercise caution. There was a spike in crimes aimed at the religious minority after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States by Islamist terrorists, and Ayoub said there has been an increase again since 2010, starting around the time of the bitter dispute over Park 51, the so-called "Ground Zero Mosque" in Manhattan.

The latest round of cautionary alerts was set off by the bloody attack on a different religious group. On Aug. 5, six Sikh worshippers were killed and others wounded when Wade Michael Page opened fire at their temple in Oak Creek, Wis., before killing himself.

Because the suspect is dead, his motives remain unknown. But he had white supremacist connections, so many observers concluded that his attack was a hate crime targeting strangers who were minorities.

"What happened in Wisconsin was a tragedy, and it shed light on the bigotry that unfortunately still exists in this country,” said Ayoub.

Muslim groups expressed solidarity with the Sikh community, and fears of their own.

"Within an hour of the Sikh shooting we were on the phone with the Dearborn metro law enforcement, and beefed up security that evening," said Ayoub, who is the legal director for the Washington-based ADC. The group has offices in Dearborn, Mich., which is home to the largest concentration of Arab Americans in the country.

In the 12 days since that deadly shooting, at least eight cases of vandalism and attacks on mosques, including a suspected arson, have been documented by the ADC and other civil rights groups.

Investigators have not been able to prove a fire that destroyed a mosque in Joplin, Mo., on Aug. 6 was intentionally set, the FBI said on Thursday, but they have video surveillance of an apparent arson attempt at the mosque one week earlier and have described the second fire as "suspicious."

In Morton Grove, Ill. while 500 were attending evening prayers at a mosque in the Chicago suburb, a man shot at the building with a pellet gun, only slightly damaging the building, but nearly hitting a security guard. The man arrested in connection with the incident turned out to be a neighbor who had a history of complaints and opposition to the mosque, said Rizwan Kadir, who is on the board of the mosque and school.

In Oklahoma City, vandals defaced the Grand Mosque, firing paintball guns at it while it was filled with worshippers. In Lombard, Ill., a "MacGyver bomb" hit the window of an Islamic school that was being used for evening prayer. The soda bottle, filled with chemicals and aluminum foil that react to make an explosion, did not break the window and exploded outside, so worshippers were rattled but not hurt. In Hayward, Calif., four teenagers were arrested after vandalizing a mosque by throwing lemons, oranges, eggs, and firing BB guns.

"If you look at the smaller incidents in isolation you can deal with it, but when you see all these things happening, it does take its emotional toll on people,” said Kadir.

Kadir said many people in the area, local Christian and Jewish groups, as well as the police and Morton Grove mayor and trustees have come forward to show solidarity with the Muslim community since the shooting.

"All these are positive things," he said. "At the same time we are on our guard."

Council on American Islamic relations: Safety and security tips

While no one is saying that the attacks are connected, many Muslim leaders and civil rights advocates see common fuel in the anti-Muslim rhetoric that they say has intensified during the current election cycle.

"When the rhetoric gets bad, the hate crimes and attacks go up,” said Ayoub, of ADC. "Unless the rhetoric changes, I feel there will be more happening before the election.

On the list of politicians he says are fueling bigotry is Michele Bachmann, who recently led the call for a federal investigation of senior State Deparatment official Huma Abedin. Bachmann accused Abedin of using her position to influence policy in favor of Egypt’s Islamist Muslim Brotherhood.

The charge outraged many Muslims. Even some of Bachman’s fellow Republicans protested the attack, including Sen. John McCain, who defended Abedin as a "true patriot."

Another politician becoming well known for his persistent warnings about the threat of "homegrown radicals" among the Muslim population is Rep. Joe Walsh, R-Ill., a member of the House Homeland Security Committee.

"While the overwhelming majority of Muslims are as peace loving as everyone else, there are radical Islamists right here in the United States trying to kill Americans and destroy this country," he told a town hall meeting in Elk Grove Village, Ill.

The ADC draws a direct line between Walsh's comments and the "MacGyver bomb" attack on the worshippers in his district, saying his comments incited fear. In a statement on Wednesday, the group called on "all politicians and elected officials to change the national discourse, distance themselves from xenophobic rhetoric and put an immediate end to the culture of hate and violence."

Walsh's office rejected the idea that the congressman's statements incite or condone violence against ordinary Muslims. Walsh was merely restating what has been said in a series of committee hearings on homegrown radicalization of Muslims, according to spokesman Justin Roth.

"Not one time has Congressman Walsh said that we need to go get those Muslims," said Roth. "He condemns these attacks just as he condemns the more than 1,000 attacks against Jews every year (that take place) simply out of hatred."

Ayoub and others urged Muslims to reach out to police in their areas seeking additional patrols and support, especially for crowded Eid al Fitre prayers on Sunday and Monday. 

"It's very important to keep everybody calm, don't let your people be afraid," said Ayoub. "We don't want people not going to the mosque because they are afraid. We want to ensure that people go and leave safely."

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Michele Bachmann doesn’t want to be Swiss after all.

On Tuesday, Swiss national television reported that Bachmann, a Republican U.S. senator from Minnesota and former GOP presidential candidate, had recently become a citizen of Switzerland, a landlocked European country surrounded by Italy, France and Germany.

By Thursday, after media reports about her dual citizenship, Bachmann said she had sent the Swiss consulate a letter to withdraw her citizenship. She said she wanted to be clear that she was "100 percent committed to our United States Constitution and the United States of America."

She was eligible for citizenship because Marcus Bachmann, her husband of 34 years, was born to Swiss immigrants who moved to Wisconsin, POLITICO reported. Bachmann’s office said the Bachmann children wanted dual citizenship and so the family decided to go through the process together, according to Minnesota Public Radio. They officially became Swiss citizens in March.

In Tuesday's report, Arthur Honegger, a journalist for Swiss national television, asked Bachmann if she would consider running for office in Switzerland.

Gesturing to the politicians behind her, Bachmann said competition would be “very stiff because they are very good.”

The Bachmanns visit Switzerland often, she added, always returning home with bags of the country's well-known chocolate.

But on Thursday, Bachmann released a statement saying she had sent a letter to the Swiss Consulate requesting to withdraw her Swiss citizenship.

“I took this action because I want to make it perfectly clear: I was born in America and I am a proud American citizen,” she said. “I am proud of my allegiance to the greatest nation the world has ever known.”

The Swiss Embassy in Washington confirmed that the Swiss Consulate in Chicago had received Bachmann's e-mail asking that her Swiss citizenship be withdrawn.

The embassy refused to elaborate, saying, "The Embassy does not comment on this private decision by Mrs. Bachmann."

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Updated at 8:15 a.m. ET

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney eked out a razor-thin victory in Tuesday night’s Iowa Republican caucuses, holding off former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum’s late-in-the-game-surge to win.

Win Mcnamee / Getty Images

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Jan 3.

After a night that saw the two candidates claim the lead, the GOP announced that Romney beat Santorum by just eight votes to become the apparent winner. Ron Paul finished third.

Romney and Santorum remained virtually tied as returns came back throughout the evening in this cycle's first nominating contest.  At the conclusion, each ended up at almost exactly a 25 percent share of the vote.

Chairman of the Iowa Republican Party, Matt Strawn, announced Romney got 30,015 votes and Santorum received 30,007 votes out of a record turnout of 122,255.

The result represented a dramatic closing act by Santorum to cement a furious, last-minute surge during which conservatives rallied around his campaign.

"Game on!" the jubilant ex-senator declared in remarks shortly after midnight.

The results were also humbling to an extent for the Romney campaign, which had appeared so confident in victory that it planned an overnight stay for the candidate in Iowa tonight instead of New Hampshire, where Romney's built a firewall. The former governor had also appeared to predict victory in a Monday night speech.

Andrew Burton / Getty Images

U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum addresses an Iowa crowd on January 3.

Texas Rep. Ron Paul finished third, at 21 percent. 

Three other candidates, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Texas Gov. Rick Perry and Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann had also sought to beat expectations and rejuvenate their candidacies in subsequent primary contests in New Hampshire and South Carolina.

Gingrich had the edge, at 13 percent, over Perry (10 percent) while Bachmann finished in sixth, at 5 percent.
Perry said he would take the next few days to re-assess his campaign.

"I've decided to return to Texas, assess the results of tonight's caucus, determine whether there is a path forward for myself in this race," he said in remarks shortly before midnight.

But the story of the night was Santorum, who managed to rally conservatives, who'd searched desperately throughout the campaign for an alternative to Romney, after other would-be contenders washed out throughout the fall.

Santorum noted "another candidate in this race," referring to Romney, whom pundits viewed as more electable. He paused when a member of his crowd said "RomneyCare," referring to the Massachusetts health reform law Romney had enacted but conservatives deplore for its similarities to President Obama's health care reforms.

"Let me tell you: What wins in America are bold ideas, sharp contrasts, and a plan that includes everyone," Santorum said.

"We are off to New Hampshire," Santorum declared, "With your help and God's grace we'll have another fun night a week from now."
Romney, by contrast, continued to act like the campaign's frontrunner in the evening's last remarks. He congratulated Santorum and Paul on a well-fought campaign, but trained most of his criticism on President Obama. 

Photo Blog: Caucus day photos from Iowa

In the end, Romney essentially matched his vote total from 2008, though he invested much less time and money in Iowa this cycle. But he failed to deliver the knock-out blow that his campaign had hoped for by playing in Iowa, and the results underscore the existing narrative in the campaign, that Romney is struggling to win over skeptical conservatives.

Sensing that Romney is vulnerable, the campaign now seems poised to move into a new phase in which the former Massachusetts governor will suffer more scrutiny.

Gingrich presaged this new phase in his remarks Tuesday evening, in which he vowed to continue his campaign beginning Wednesday in New Hampshire. He assailed Paul and Romney, too, while congratulating Santorum for running a positive campaign, and pointedly noted he wished he could say the same for other candidates, meaning Romney.

"We are not going to go out and run nasty ads," said Gingrich, who labeled Romney a "Massachusetts moderate" again. "But I do reserve the right to tell the truth. And if the truth seems negative, that may be more of a comment on his record than the nature of politics."

Santorum punched his ticket out of Iowa in part by emerging as the winner of a virtual game of musical chairs among candidates in Iowa who had themselves as the anti-Romney candidate. The former Pennsylvania senator had campaigned in Iowa the “traditional” way, having started to stump there well before any candidate, and becoming the first candidate to visit all of the state’s 99 counties.

The former Pennsylvania senator performed best among caucus-goers who describe themselves as very conservative, according to entrance poll data. He also won over evangelical Christians and caucus attendees who tabbed social issues as one of their priorities.

Romney had hoped to score a knock-out punch in Iowa after having scarcely competed in the race until later this fall. His campaign is hoping that a late push in Iowa, plus a victory next Tuesday in New Hampshire (where Romney leads in the polls), could all but clinch the nomination.

The Hawkeye State had ended up as Romney’s Achilles Heel in 2008. After having invested heavily in winning the contest, Romney limped out of Iowa after a disappointing second place finish.

Romney tied his 25 percent share of the caucus tally he earned in 2008 by attracting the support of caucus-goers who valued electability and the economy -- core elements of Romney's 2012 message. The most deeply conservative caucus participants shied away from Romney.

In a sign that the establishment was undaunted by Romney's finish, Sen. John McCain -- the 2008 GOP nominee and Romney's sparring partner from that cycle -- was set to back Romney on Wednesday in New Hampshire.

The results raise the stakes for the primary in New Hampshire, scheduled for Jan. 10, and two subsequent primaries in South Carolina and Florida in the second half of this month.

There are two debates scheduled for this coming Saturday and Sunday, which might provide the springboard for a new, naster stage of the campaign, with the scrutiny focused on Romney.

Paul, meanwhile, managed a third place finish by leaning on an unorthodox coalition of libertarian Republicans, young caucus-goers and independents.

"We will go on, we will raise the money," he told supporters this evening. He'll head next to New Hampshire.

His campaign, both in 2008 and 2012, has been notable for its intense enthusiasm from supporters and prolific fundraising. And in Iowa, where the strength of a candidate's organization typically correlates with a strong performance, Paul is hoping his well-organized supporters can help secure victory.

But his foes had also assailed his foreign policy views, which emphasize a limited role for the U.S. on the world stage. In a traditionally hawkish party, it’s led some political observers to suggest that Paul might have a difficult time building a broad coalition of support within the GOP.

Tuesday's results also raise fresh questions about the viability of Perry and Bachmann, who each spent heavily to win only fifth and sixth-place finishes, respectively. Bachmann made no indication of the future of her campaign during remarks late Tuesday evening.
For their parts, Bachmann and Perry have said before tonight they’ll head to South Carolina, which hosts its primary -- the third nominating contest -- on Jan. 21.

In a sign he's playing the long game, though, Romney has scheduled a trip to South Carolina overnight on Thursday and Friday morning. He’s also running ads in the Palmetto State, and announced Tuesday that he’s begun running ads in Florida, which hosts the next primary, as well.