A reader writes, of Iqbal Sacranie’s comment about what he thinks amounts to incitement to religious hatred (see post below):

‘I should like to say that it was an astounding statement that you managed to get out of Iqbal Sacranie. At least we cannot accuse him of ambiguity. I heard this sort of thing from the MCB (Muslim Council of Britain) at a large public meeting in Bradford soon after September 11th when, at the time, I was doing some work for an interfaith charity. It opened my eyes to the reality of what we are facing and the total inadequacy (or worse) of well-meaning attempts at dialogue and understanding. The logic is this: if it is a terrorist act, the perpetrator cannot be a true Muslim; if the perpetrator is a true Muslim, it cannot be a terrorist act. Thus redefined, Islam can pose as a religion of peace but support violent jihad (not "terrorism") against its opponents.’

This last point seems to me to be crucial. It is vital that people understand quite how lethal are the stakes in the incitement to religious hatred measure.