Hawzah News Agency (UK)-A van belonging to a Bradford-based charity in northern England which feeds the homeless has been “deliberately” vandalized and has hindered the group’s work in the build up to Christmas.

The windows of the van belonging to the InTouch Foundation were smashed by vandals while it was parked outside the home of the charity’s founder.

Osman Gondal, founder and chief executive of the InTouch Foundation, had arrived at his home in Allerton just half an hour before the attack took place.

He said the incident was a deliberate attack on his vehicle.

He told: “I came home from work late, about 8pm, and everything was fine, then at 8.30pm I got a call from a neighbor saying the windows of the van had been smashed.

“It was a deliberate act of vandalism. Both the driver and passenger side windows were smashed, but nothing was taken from inside the van.

 “There were a number of other vehicles on the street at the time, including my car, and none of the others were damaged.

“The van is clearly marked as a charity van.

“We help the homeless and people living in poverty in Bradford, so for someone to do that to a community asset, it makes me very sad to be honest.”

InTouch has been operating a mobile soup kitchen in Bradford since 2012 every Monday between 6.30pm and 8pm.

It also operates mobile soup kitchens and a food bank from its base in Manningham Lane, as well as working on a variety of projects in the local community.

Mr Gondal said the charity’s work is going to be affected for the Christmas period due to the vandalism.

He said: “Because of this attack we have got to spend money which is allocated to buy food for the charity’s work to get the van repaired.

“I imagine it will cost a few hundred pounds to get fixed.