Community groups and representatives have come out in strong condemnation of the attack in Woolwich.


Imam of Leeds Makakh Masjid, Qari Asim, MBE said: "London has witnessed an unspeakable, horrific and barbaric act of murder. Early reports suggest that the perpetrators of this sickening attack chanted the name of God at the scene of the crime. Islam does not permit vigilante attacks on anyone and therefore such inhumane acts have no place in Islam.
“Islam places unparalleled value on the sanctity of human life, teaching that the killing of one innocent person is equivalent to the killing of the entire human race. There is no room for any argument or suggestion that this type of callous, cold murder is in any way justified in or ratified by the teachings of Islam." 
"One of the perpetrators is seen referring to violence being committed in "our lands" in video footage which has been released following the attack. "For Muslims, wherever they live in peace is their land, and certainly many recent surveys of young British Muslims have indicated that they see Britain as being their home.”
“We call on everyone to stand united against violence and not let acts of hatred or terrorism divide our communities.”


Joint Statement from Faiths Forum for London "We, as representatives of many of London's faith communities, deplore the terrible attack that has taken place today in Woolwich.
“All of our religions exalt the sanctity of human life and no grievance could justify such a barbaric assault that has cost a young man his life. Terrorism has no place on our streets.
“We pray for the victim of this attack and his family, and call for Londoners to stand together at this time. We will redouble our efforts to work for peace, love, understanding and hope."


The Central Association Of Sunni Muslims UK and Europe (Markazi Jamat Ahle Sunnat),
“There is no excuse and justification for any single person to harm another innocent individual. This has nothing to do with the religion of Islam and the teachings of the Blessed Prophet Muhammad PBUH. Islam teaches humanity and love for one another, not to cause pain to another human.
“Those persons arrested do not represent the Muslim view and people. They do not represent the loving people of United Kingdom.
“Our thoughts and strong sympathies are with the family of the deceased victim.
“We would ask that the media and the government act lawfully and with due caution to not incite further hatred and division amongst the communities of U.K.
“Statements such as Baghdad violence on the streets of London by the Media is wholly irresponsible and will not lead to any betterment.
“We ask all British citizens and in particular the Muslim community of United Kingdom to stand united against any form of violence and terrorism.”

The Muslim Council of Britain  statement read: "This is a truly barbaric act that has no basis in Islam and we condemn this unreservedly. Our thoughts are with the victim and his family.
"We understand the victim is a serving member of the Armed Forces. Muslims have long served in this country's Armed Forces, proudly and with honour.
"This attack on a member of the Armed Forces is dishonourable, and no cause justifies this murder."


Fiyaz Mughal, the director of charity Faith Matters, said: "The cold-blooded killing of a serving British soldier is a crime that sickens every member of every community in the UK.
"For the peace of our communities to be shattered like this is almost unthinkable. We must come together, isolate those who believe that extremism and violence are acceptable, and work to ensure that they meet the full force of the law.
"We must send a clear message to anyone that an attack on a serving soldier going about their daily activities is something that must be utterly condemned."

Julie Siddiqi, of the Islamic Society of Britain, told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: "We can't allow the voices of Nick Griffin and the far right to become louder than ours in the coming days. They will say what we have to say and it gives us even more incentive to speak out and come together and not allow people like that to divide us as a country.
"The people who did this act yesterday do not speak in my name, do not speak for my community or the rest of the country. We have to come out with the strongest condemnation, which is what I'm seeing this morning.
"All of the Muslim organisations have come out with the strongest possible terms to say there is absolutely no excuse whatsoever, no justification for anything like this.
"This is one of the most shocking things I have seen in recent years and to have the people of Woolwich have to experience that so close to them, I just feel is absolutely horrific."

The Ramadhan Foundation said yesterday: "I wish to condemn the evil and barbaric crime carried out in Woolwich.

"Our immediate thoughts are with the family and friends of the victims. From whatever angle you see the attack, it was at every level evil.

"We must allow the police to gather all the facts before unnecessary speculation and wait for the facts before determining its impact on our country.

"But what happens in the days to come, London and our nation will come together and will not be divided. The terrorists will never win and succeed in their evil plans."

MPACUK spokesperson Asghar Bukhari said, "Our governments will deny the fact that Foreign Policy is the root cause of these attacks taking place. Muslims are the biggest victims on this earth and are oppressed due to our Foreign Policy.

"People are confused looking for solutions and are turning towards violence. These people are not religiously motivated but in fact politically motivated. Until our governments do not admit this and work towards changing their policies, we will never reach any better solution."