Radical shouts down Reid on Muslim 'brainwashing'

Omar Brooks — also known as Abu Izzadeen — drowned out Mr Reid with a volley of abuse as the Home Secretary addressed members of the Muslim community in Leyton, accusing him of being an enemy to Islam.

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• Muslims' fury as they are told to keep watch on their kids

As security guards and police tried to usher the well-known London radical out of the building Mr Brooks lashed out at police tactics.

He criticised the arrest of a mother with a six-month-old baby, who has since been charged. "You are an enemy of Islam and all Muslims," he said.

"How dare you come here to a Muslim area after you have arrested Muslims? You are a tyrant, more than 1,000 Muslims have been arrested."

Several Muslims in the audience urged him to stop, but Mr Brooks told them that the police would kick down their doors and drag their wives and daughters from their beds.

Mr Brooks and several of his associates were eventually ushered out of the door. The outburst will prompt questions about the security surrounding the Home Secretary. Mr Reid appeared unperturbed.

He insisted that all parents in the community should regard their children as potential recruits for suicide bombings.

"There is no nice way of saying this. These fanatics are looking to groom and brainwash children, including your children, for suicide bombing. To kill themselves in order to murder others," he said.

"Look for the tell-tale signs now and talk to them before their hatred grows and you risk losing them for ever. In protecting our families we are protecting our community."

Asked about the recent speech by Pope Benedict, which sparked anger across the Muslim world, he said that while all sides should be careful to avoid giving offence, there was also a need for people to have the courage not to be intimidated.

Omar Brooks, a leading figure among fringe Islamic extremists, was born in 1976, christened Trevor but converted to Islam at the age of 17. He is a long-time supporter of

Omar Bakri Mohammed, the self-styled Tottenham Ayatollah now living in exile in Beirut. Mr Brooks once told BBC2's Newsnight that the 7/7 attacks would make Londoners "wake up and smell the coffee".

It prompted calls for his immediate arrest and helped to lead to a toughening up of terror laws.