'Terrorist' blast near mosque in central England on day of Woolwich victim’s funeral

British police are saying they are treating the nail bomb blast in a Muslim dominated Birmingham suburb as a "terrorist incident."

West midlands police say they were called out after residents heard a loud bang in the Tipton area of the city shortly after 1:00pm local time (12:00 GMT). There were no reported injuries, but the immediate area around the blast was evacuated.

"An investigation is being led by the West Midlands Counter-Terrorism Unit and it is being treated as a terrorist incident," police said in a statement as cited by Reuters. "Some residents have reported finding debris in the area and finding nails. This is being investigated by forensic officers at the scene."

The incident happened on the same day as the funeral of former army drummer Lee Rigby, who was brutally murdered by Muslim extremists in Woolwich in May. Both suspects face a murder trial in November, but talked freely with people at the scene of the murder before armed police arrived.

Since Rigby’s killing, the English Defense League (EDL), a right wing group opposed to the increasing Islamification of Britain, have staged a number of protests – many of which include EDL members shouting slogans like “Muslim killers off our streets.”

Soon after the Woolwich murder, a Muslim community center in London was burned down and the letters EDL were scrawled on the wall. Police have yet to discover who was responsible.

In the wake of the tragedy, officers say there has been an increase of attacks on Muslims nationwide.

Last month, a number of men from Birmingham – home to a large Muslim population – were jailed for plotting to attack an EDL rally with a nail bomb.