British police chiefs have warned that neo-Nazi sympathisers could be plotting a terror attack against Muslims, aimed at sparking a race war in the UK.
The surveillance has been stepped up of right-wing extremists, and Muslims have been warned they could be targeted to inflame tensions.
The Daily Express quoted commander Shaun Sawyer, of the Scotland Yard’s specialist operations wing, as saying that Al Qaeda remained the top priority of the security agencies but neo-Nazis were emerging as a serious threat.
“I fear that they will have a spectacular. They will carry out an attack that will lead to a loss of life or injury to a community somewhere. They’re not choosy about which community,” Sawyer said.
The warning emerged at a meeting of the Muslim Safety Forum, a group that liaises with senior police officers to discuss security issues.
Nail bomber David Copeland was jailed for life for the last neo-Nazi terror strikes in the UK, in London in 1999.
Neo-Nazi Martyn Gilleard was jailed for 16 years last year for terrorism offences after nail bombs, machetes, gunpowder and racist literature was found at his home in Goole, East Yorkshire.
A Met spokeswoman confirmed that recent prosecutions and statements by extremists groups had given an indication of intentions “by violent extremists to cause harm”.
