Western democracies need to wake up to the threat of Islamic extremism, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has said.
He said that even after 9/11, he underestimated the power of the extremists, and he thinks their power has grown since then.
Radical Muslims seek “supremacy not coexistence”, Mr Blair said, and he fears that “The West is asleep on this issue”, even though it is the biggest challenge.
Motives
He thinks there is a need to tackle the underlying motives of extremist Muslims, not just their violent methods.
The former Prime Minister made the remarks in an interview with the Daily Telegraph’s Charles Moore.
Tony Blair said the anti-religion movement stirred up by people like Richard Dawkins is not the answer.
Extremists
He said that extreme atheists “require religious fundamentalists” to make their argument for them, and “We must push back against aggressive secularism”.
A Bill to tackle the problem of Sharia courts operating in this country has been introduced to the House of Lords by Baroness Cox.
It would give Muslim women more protection from discrimination, and stop a parallel legal system taking root.