People from the Muslim community have raised more than £12,000 for the Westminster attack victims and their families

Hundreds of Muslims have come together to donate more than £12,000 for the victims of the Westminster terror attack and their families, smashing an initial target of £10,000 in less than 15 hours.

The LaunchGood fundraising page, called Muslims United for London, was set up by Londoner Muddassar Ahme, who witnessed the attack from his office window and described it as a “profoundly moving experience”.

He wrote: “I was a witness to the attack, having entered Portcullis house less than 10 minutes from when it occurred. Barricaded in an office for nearly 4 hours while events unfolded outside me, I was shocked to see the injuries and loss of life outside my window.

“I reflected on what it means to be a born-and-bred Londoner and found myself proud of how security and medical services responded, how ordinary passers-by offered first aid, and what our Parliament means to me, an institution that is the oldest of its kind in the world and how, regardless of our critiques of government policies or political parties, remains an institution that reflects how the will of the people can be expressed with civility and dignity.”

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He decided to set up the page, which is a Muslim-led campaign but welcomes contributions from other faiths, to help raise funds to cover upcoming costs for the victims and their families – and the donations have been flooding in.The initial target was £10,000 but that was able to be raised to £20,000 after successfully receiving £12,096 (at the time of publishing).

In a statement, he said: “The British Muslim community stands with all Britons and Londoners during these difficult times and extends their support in raising funds to help with the immediate, short-term needs of the families of Keith Palmer, the other victims and the families of the victims.“While no amount of money will bring back lives lost or take away from the pain the victims and their families are going through, we hope to lessen their burden in some way. Though this is a Muslim-led campaign, we welcome contributions from our friends from other faiths and none.”You can make a donation here.