Muslims demonstrating in Whitehall have challenged Prince Charles’ comments over British Muslims abiding by British values.
The demonstration comes as the Prince of Wales held talks with Jordan’s King Abdullah II during his Middle East tour.
He spoke out against the radicalisation of British Muslims, saying he thought people who were “born here, go to school here” would abide by those values “we hold dear”.
At Downing Street today, more than a thousand Muslims called for derogatory depictions of the prophet Mohammed – like those featured in Charlie Hebdo – to be seen as a hate crime.
Some welcomed Prince Charles’ comments on values, but emphasised that Islamic values should be seen synonymous with British values.
Shaykh Tauqir Ishaq of the Muslim Action Forum told Channel 4 News: “If you are a good Muslim, you should be following good British values and if you are a good British citizen, essentially you are following Islamic principles.”
In response to the demonstration, a small number of counter protesters supporting the English Defence League (EDL) and Britain First also gathered on Whitehall, shouting “Je Suis Charlie” and some chanted racist slogans.
#London – Clash: #Muslim Action Forum vs. #BritainFirst pic.twitter.com/IBzMWuHYWL
— Martin Speer (@martin_speer) February 8, 2015