US: After arrest, Muslim boy becomes hero, hailed and invited by Obama, Mark Zuckerberg

Washington, Sept 17: Ahmed Mohamed, 14-year-old Muslim student, has become a hero overnight. After his arrest, now US President Barack Obama and Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg invited him to White House and Facebook headquarter.

Mohamed, a student of MacArthur High School in Irving, Texas, near Dallas was arrested as he brought a self-invented clock to school.

[Shame: Muslim boy brings home-made clock in school in US, arrested]

His teachers thought he had brought a hoax bomb. School Principal and teachers called police who later arrested him. His arrest created a furore in the country.

Now, Obama and Zuckerberg praised the young student and invited him to White House. Writing on micro-blogging site Twitter, Obama tweeted, "Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It's what makes America great."

Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It's what makes America great.

— President Obama (@POTUS) September 16, 2015

White House Press secretary Josh Earnest was quoted as saying, "This episode (Mohamed's arrest) is a good illustration of how pernicious stereotypes can prevent even good-hearted people who have dedicated their lives to educating young people from doing the good work that they set out to do."

Meanwhile, Zuckerberg wrote on Facebook, "You've probably seen the story about Ahmed, the 14 year old student in Texas who built a clock and was arrested when he took it to school."

"Having the skill and ambition to build something cool should lead to applause, not arrest. The future belongs to people like Ahmed."

"Ahmed, if you ever want to come by Facebook, I'd love to meet you. Keep building," Zuckerberg added.

OneIndia News