A Church of England bishop has sought police assistance after receiving death threats over an article which claimed Islamist radicals had turned some parts of the country into hostile "no-go areas" for non-Muslims.
The Bishop of Rochester, the Right Reverend Dr Michael Nazir-Ali, said calls had been made to his home in Kent threatening himself and his family.
Kent Police would not say if the bishop had been given police protection, adding it did not comment on matters of personal security.
The Rev Canon Tony Smith, chaplain to the bishop, said police had looked into the calls, and steps had been taken to ensure the bishop's safety.
"We are getting on with life," he added.
The Pakistan-born cleric had written in an article in the Sunday Telegraph last month that non-Muslims found it hard to live and work in these separated communities, comparing the hostility to the intimidation associated with some supporters of far-right political parties.
"There has been a worldwide resurgence of the ideology of Islamic extremism," the bishop had written.
"One of the results of this has been to further alienate the young from the nation in which they were growing up and also to turn already separate communities into "no-go" areas where adherence to this ideology has become a mark of acceptability.
"Those of a different faith or race may find it difficult to live or work there because of hostility to them."
But the bishop attempted to clarify his comments, writing on his Web site that the phrase "no-go" was meant to imply parallel lives and self-contained communities rather than segregation similar to that which had existed in some neighbourhoods in Northern Ireland in the past.
"I made clear in the article that my comments were about the particular impact of Islamic extremism and were not about Muslims in general," he added.
Nazir-Ali, who was appointed in 1994, said the best way of welcoming and integrating newer arrivals in this country should have been "a Christian vision of hospitality and not the secular policy of multiculturalism which has led to such disastrous consequences".
Referring to the threats, he said it was critically important to encourage discussion not diminish it, and that he had received overwhelming support in his "overflowing postbag".
"I was aware that what I had written would cause a debate on the issue but I have been surprised at its scale," he wrote.
"I deeply regret any hurt and do not wish to cause offence to anyone, let alone by Muslim friends."
your views on this
Ah well, for this post it means sarcasm!
