Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari, secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), said it was the "Islamic duty" not only to utterly and totally condemn such actions, but to provide all the support necessary to prevent such atrocities from taking place.

"The events of the past few days have been very disturbing and challenging ones for all of us," he told a news conference at the MCB offices in east London.

"At the very outset we would like to express our heartfelt gratitude to all the police officers and security experts who were tasked with removing the threat from the explosive devices in London and Glasgow.

"It looks sadly as if the terror threat currently facing our country will be with us for some time to come. So let us be absolutely clear about this, that those who seek to deliberately kill or maim innocent people are the enemies of all of us.

"There is no cause whatsoever that could possibly justify such barbarity.

"Those who engage in such murderous actions and those that provide support for them are the enemies of all, Muslims and non Muslims, and they stand against our shared values in the UK."

Dr Abdul Bari said in his statement that the police and security services had the "enormous responsibility" for trying to ensure the safety of all Britons.

He said as such, they deserve the fullest support and co-operation of "each and every sector of our society" including all Muslims.

He said the MCB would be convening a meeting at the Islamic Cultural Centre in Regent's Park, London, of key Imams and leading community activists from across the country on Saturday. He said that at Saturday's meeting they hoped to discuss how they can work better with other partners, including the police to try and undermine and defeat the terrorists who seek to attack us.