The cab driver who was stabbedu00a0 by a passenger says he was definitely attacked because of his religion.

Ahmedu00a0 Sharif was stabbed repeatedly while driving his taxi on the East Side.

He says the suspect, 21-year-old Michael Enright, attacked him after first asking whether he was Muslim.
Despite the attack, Sharifu00a0 said that he still loves New York.

"This is a city of all colours, races, all religion, everyone," he said. "We live here, side by side, peacefully."
Sharif also said the controversial plan for a mosque near Ground Zero did not come up in the conversation with Enright before the stabbing.

NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly says officers found an empty bottle of scotch in Enright's backpack. They also found several journals, some written when Enright was embedded with troops in Afghanistan.

Governor David Paterson spoke out about the attack, saying it's just what the terrorists wanted when they attacked the US on 9/11.

However, the governor also said the driver's religion may have not prompted the attack, and such incidents often involve underlying mental health problems.