Muslim youngsters are being driven into the arms of extremists by alienation and Islamophobia, claims one of the country's most senior police officers.
The warning from Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Tarique Ghaffur came as a poll showed almost a quarter of British Muslims believed the 7/7 bombings could be justified because of the Government's support for the war on terror.
Mr Ghaffur, the country's highest ranking Muslim officer, said extremists were preying on a "generation of angry young people" who were affected by Islamophobia in Western society.
Calling for an independent judicial inquiry into the radicalisation of young Muslims, he said the overriding objective had to be to stop terrorist attacks.
"We must think long and hard about the causal factors of anger and resentment," he said.
"I therefore support those who are calling for an independent judicial review of the issue of young Muslims and extremism and the wider community dimension."
Mr Ghaffur was supported by Chief Supt Ali Dizaei, another senior ethnic minority officer in the Met, who called for an inquiry by a senior judge with ministerial input. "That's how today we go about defeating and controlling terrorism for the future," he said.
