Blair is warned that the humiliation... that would attend a military conquest is likely to cause bitterness and conflict for generations to come

LONDON, January 14 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Britain's biggest Muslim organization has warned British Prime Minister Tony Blair that war with Iraq would cause community relations to deteriorate and breed "bitterness and conflict for generations to come".

A war would worsen relations between communities and faiths in Britain and would cause "lasting damage" to relations between the Muslim world and the West, the Guardian reported Tuesday, January 14.

Iqbal Sacranie, Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain, urged the Prime Minister to use his influence to "avert the destruction of an important Muslim country" and warned of deep cynicism among British Muslims about the motives for the war on terror.

In a letter to No 10 (HQs of Blair), Sacranie described the plans for war as a "colonial policy".

"It is generally believed the real American objective behind such an invasion is to change the political map of the Middle East, appropriate its oil wealth and appoint Israel as a regional superpower exercising total hegemony over the entire Middle East and beyond," he wrote.

The opposition of the MCB, a moderate organization linked to dozens of community groups, highlights the failure of the U.S. and Britain to convince Muslims in the West of the validity of the war on terrorism.

In the letter, Sacranie expressed support for the anti-terrorist campaign, but wrote: "The war on terror should and can be won, but it has to be fought collectively not selectively, openly not secretively."

He told the Guardian that when he referred to fighting terrorism "collectively" he meant: "in all areas, whether it is states - like Israel - or organizations."

Sacranie said he did not believe there should be war even if Iraq was found to possess weapons of mass destruction.

"If WMD are being got rid of, all countries have to get rid of them, and war is not the way to go about this.

"If we are talking about the region, Israel has chemical, biological and nuclear weapons."

He also criticized the chief rabbi, Dr Jonathan Sacks, who has expressed conditional support for military action against Saddam Hussein.

"We are very saddened by the remarks made by the chief rabbi," Sacranie said.

The MCB's letter praised Blair's attempt to revive the Middle East peace process, but added: "A war on Iraq would certainly unravel whatever little has been achieved so far.

"The humiliation... that would attend a military conquest is likely to provide a natural ground for the growth of bitterness and conflict for generations to come."

Both President George Bush and Blair have stated that the prospective campaign against Iraq is directed at Saddam Hussein's regime and is not a conflict with the wider Muslim world.

A Downing Street spokeswoman said: "The Prime Minister has made clear that this is not about a war against Islam.

"The government has done lots of work with the Muslim community here and with the Arab world and will continue to do so."