MacAskill: Scotland will not allow terrorism to win

The police and politicians will continue to fight “extremism on all sides”, the justice secretary has pledged.

Kenny MacAskill: Meeting with Muslim council. Picture: Julie Bull

Kenny MacAskill spoke out in the wake of the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby in Woolwich last week.

He was “horrified” by the killing which was “rightly condemned by everyone in Scotland with a sense of humanity”, he said.

The justice secretary has met the Muslim Council of Scotland in the wake of the killing and was to meet leading figures from the Muslim community last night at Annandale Street mosque in Edinburgh. Speaking before the visit, Mr MacAskill said: “As the First Minister made clear to Parliament last week, previous challenges such as the Glasgow Airport attack in 2007 have shown Scotland will not allow acts of terrorism to win.

“The purpose of terrorism is to divide communities from each other, but Scotland has shown it will remain united, with the recent incident in London being rightly condemned by everyone in Scotland with a sense of humanity.

“I met with the Muslim Council for Scotland last week who were horrified, as we all were, by the events in Woolwich, and I was delighted to be invited to the Annandale Street mosque.

“The Muslim community is an intrinsic part of our cultural heritage in Scotland and it is crucial that we recognise the vital contribution they make to Scottish society.”