BRITAIN/ MCB:Britain's most powerful Muslim umbrella organisation has issued its strongest message to date on the need to fight terrorism, urging all Muslims to co-operate with the police.
In a move believed to mark a major departure in policy, leaders from the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) said that, in light of the current security threat, existing tensions between the government, security services and Muslim communities should recede to the background. "To be successful in our collective effort to deal with the threats of terror it is imperative that we all work together. We need to have confidence and mutual trust in each other," Muhammad Abdul Bari, MCB secretary-general, said.
"The challenges facing us as a nation require us to work together for the joint benefit of all. Those who seek to deliberately kill or maim innocent people are the enemies of us all. There is no cause whatsoever that could possibly justify such barbarity."
He said that the police and security services deserved the "fullest support and co-operation from each and every sector of our society, including all Muslims".
The MCB, which has 400 affiliates throughout Britain, has called an urgent meeting of leading imams and community figures to discuss what Muslim communities can do to confront the threat of terrorism.
"We hope to discuss how we can work better with other partners, including the police, to try to undermine and defeat the terrorists who seek to attack us," said Dr Bari.
Meanwhile, the British government yesterday announced that it is to ban two violent Islamist groups accused of carrying out terrorist attacks in south Asia.
The addition of Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh and Tehreek Nifaz-e-Shariat Mohammadi to the list of organisations proscribed under the Terrorism Act had no connection with last weekend's attempted attacks, a Home Office statement said.
So far, 44 predominantly Islamist organisations have been banned in the UK.