Shock and scepticism among Muslims

WORSHIPPERS gathering at mosques for Friday prayer expressed a mixture of shock, condemnation and scepticism over the arrest of 24 young British Muslims for an alleged terrorist plot to blow up transatlantic passenger jets.

But while some Muslims condemned the use of violence as “terrible”, others were concerned the raids were orchestrated to turn attention away from conflict in the Middle East.

At the mosque opposite one of the houses searched by police in Walthamstow, uniformed officers stood at the entrance to provide a clear path for worshippers who did not wish to speak to the assembled media.