British foreign policy blamed for growth of Muslim extremism

Perceived injustices in British foreign policy, particularly in the Middle East, are helping drive some British Muslims to extremism, according to the government-commissioned report published Thursday.

Seven Home Office working groups set up to look into the root causes of the July 7 suicide attacks in London - believed to have been carried out by four young British Muslims - said the government must learn from the impact of its actions overseas.

The report said "radical impulses" among Muslims were often triggered by "perceptions of injustices inherent in Western foreign policy."

"British foreign policy - especially in the Middle East - cannot be left unconsidered as a factor in the motivations of criminal radical extremists," the report concluded. "We believe it is a key contributory factor."

The committees also recommended setting up a British Islam Web site to counter the mass of extremist Muslim sites on the Internet, saying there are few easily accessible and relevant mainstream sites, the AP informs.

V.Y.