Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has called on the UK to draw a line against the poison of extremism as he warned the country was being torn apart by rising domestic tension.
During comments to media outside Downing Street on Friday, Mr Sunak said there had been a shocking increase in intimidation, threats and outright violence since the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza last October.
“Now our democracy itself is a target,” he said. “I need to speak to you all this evening because this situation has gone on long enough.
“I fear that our great achievement in building the world’s most successful multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracy is being deliberately undermined.”
He said a number of extremist groups were feeding off each other to weaponise the evils of anti-Semitism and anti-Muslim ideology.
“Islamist extremists and far rights groups are spreading a poison, that poison is extremism,” he said.
“The faith of Islam, peacefully practised by millions of our fellow citizens, is emphatically not the same thing as the extremist political ideology of Islamism, which aims to separate Muslims from the rest of society.
“They are equally desperate to pretend that their violence is somehow justified, when actually these groups are two sides of the same extremist coin.”
To the sound of protesters shouting outside the Downing Street gate, Mr Sunak said that extremism must not be allowed to take hold and destroy freedoms.
The government is pushing through measure to improve security of MPs amid heightened concerns about public representatives becoming targets in large-scale protests and other actions.
“Council meetings and local events have been stormed,” he said. “MPs do not feel safe in their homes. Long-standing parliamentary conventions have been upended because of safety concerns.”
Mr Sunak cited the outcome of the Rochdale by-election, which was won George Galloway. Mr Galloway was elected MP for Rochdale on Friday following a campaign in which he focused on the war in Gaza.
“It’s beyond alarming that last night, the Rochdale by-election returned a candidate that dismisses the horror of what happened on October 7, who glorifies Hezbollah and is endorsed by Nick Griffin, the racist former leader of the BNP,” he said.
Mr Galloway refuted the charges, countering that Mr Sunak was treading a dangerous road and that the Workers Party is the “antidote to extremism”.
He added that the Prime Minister was playing a “very dangerous game” that could drive young Muslims on to the “rocks of extremism” after his speech.
His win in the Greater Manchester seat, in which he secured almost 40 per cent of the vote in a constituency that has a strong Muslim population, had the main political parties “panicking a bit”, he said.
“It is a very dangerous game the political leaders are playing.”
A large number of protests are expected across the country at the weekend, with some demonstrators expected to gather in central London to demand a ceasefire in Gaza.
Mr Sunak said some of the protests over the war in Gaza, triggered after Hamas attacked Israelis on October 7, had been hijacked by extremist groups and called on demonstrators not to allow this to happen.
“You have a chance in the coming weeks to show that you can protest decently, peacefully and with empathy for your fellow citizens,” he said.
“Let us prove these extremists wrong and show them that even when we disagree.”
By the end of March, the government is expected to come up with a new framework for tackling extremism, ranging from bolstering the counter-extremism programme Prevent to ensuring police take a more robust operational stance tackling actions that are banned by law.
Keir Starmer, leader of the opposition, backed Mr Sunak and said the message of unity was one that all leaders should embrace in the face of intimidation.
Other opposition leaders said the Prime Minister's own party contained leading figures that were themselves creating divisions.
Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said Mr Sunak was the wrong messenger to make the case.
“The British people will take no lessons from a Prime Minister and Conservative Party who have sowed the seeds of division for years,” he said.
Election year 2024
The preparations for the address had put Westminster on a brief alert for a general election. The Prime Minister spent the day in Scotland, giving a speech to the Scottish Conservative conference in the afternoon.
A contest to elect a new UK government is widely expected to take place this year, with an election legally having to be held by January 2025.
The Tories are well behind Labour in opinion polls, with some putting Keir Starmer’s party as much as 20 points in front.
The specs: 2018 Harley-Davidson Fat Boy
Price, base / as tested Dh97,600
Engine 1,745cc Milwaukee-Eight v-twin engine
Transmission Six-speed gearbox
Power 78hp @ 5,250rpm
Torque 145Nm @ 3,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined 5.0L / 100km (estimate)
Read more about the coronavirus
Brief scoreline:
Al Wahda 2
Al Menhali 27', Tagliabue 79'
Al Nassr 3
Hamdallah 41', Giuliano 45 1', 62'
Notable cricketers and political careers
- India: Kirti Azad, Navjot Sidhu and Gautam Gambhir (rumoured)
- Pakistan: Imran Khan and Shahid Afridi (rumoured)
- Sri Lanka: Arjuna Ranatunga, Sanath Jayasuriya, Tillakaratne Dilshan (rumoured)
- Bangladesh (Mashrafe Mortaza)
Brief scoreline:
Manchester United 0
Manchester City 2
Bernardo Silva 54', Sane 66'
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 640hp
Torque: 760nm
On sale: 2026
Price: Not announced yet
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
If you go
Flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh with a stop in Yangon from Dh3,075, and Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Phnom Penh with its partner Bangkok Airlines from Dh2,763. These trips take about nine hours each and both include taxes. From there, a road transfer takes at least four hours; airlines including KC Airlines (www.kcairlines.com) offer quick connecting flights from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville from about $100 (Dh367) return including taxes. Air Asia, Malindo Air and Malaysian Airlines fly direct from Kuala Lumpur to Sihanoukville from $54 each way. Next year, direct flights are due to launch between Bangkok and Sihanoukville, which will cut the journey time by a third.
The stay
Rooms at Alila Villas Koh Russey (www.alilahotels.com/ kohrussey) cost from $385 per night including taxes.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20NOTHING%20PHONE%20(2)
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ahmed Raza
UAE cricket captain
Age: 31
Born: Sharjah
Role: Left-arm spinner
One-day internationals: 31 matches, 35 wickets, average 31.4, economy rate 3.95
T20 internationals: 41 matches, 29 wickets, average 30.3, economy rate 6.28
The Year Earth Changed
Directed by:Tom Beard
Narrated by: Sir David Attenborough
Stars: 4
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Where to buy
Limited-edition art prints of The Sofa Series: Sultani can be acquired from Reem El Mutwalli at www.reemelmutwalli.com
ALRAWABI%20SCHOOL%20FOR%20GIRLS
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Fifa%20World%20Cup%20Qatar%202022%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFirst%20match%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENovember%2020%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFinal%2016%20round%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%203%20to%206%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EQuarter-finals%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%209%20and%2010%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESemi-finals%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%2013%20and%2014%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFinal%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDecember%2018%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The%20National%20selections
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More from Neighbourhood Watch:
History's medical milestones
1799 - First small pox vaccine administered
1846 - First public demonstration of anaesthesia in surgery
1861 - Louis Pasteur published his germ theory which proved that bacteria caused diseases
1895 - Discovery of x-rays
1923 - Heart valve surgery performed successfully for first time
1928 - Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin
1953 - Structure of DNA discovered
1952 - First organ transplant - a kidney - takes place
1954 - Clinical trials of birth control pill
1979 - MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging, scanned used to diagnose illness and injury.
1998 - The first adult live-donor liver transplant is carried out
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Pots for the Asian Qualifiers
Pot 1: Iran, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, China
Pot 2: Iraq, Uzbekistan, Syria, Oman, Lebanon, Kyrgyz Republic, Vietnam, Jordan
Pot 3: Palestine, India, Bahrain, Thailand, Tajikistan, North Korea, Chinese Taipei, Philippines
Pot 4: Turkmenistan, Myanmar, Hong Kong, Yemen, Afghanistan, Maldives, Kuwait, Malaysia
Pot 5: Indonesia, Singapore, Nepal, Cambodia, Bangladesh, Mongolia, Guam, Macau/Sri Lanka
The Library: A Catalogue of Wonders
Stuart Kells, Counterpoint Press
A Long Way Home by Peter Carey
Faber & Faber
