A U.K. far-left website has reported that speakers from the Muslim Association of Britain (MAB) addressed a demonstration in Edinburgh last Saturday against the renewal of Britain’s Trident nuclear weapons. The report stated that nearly 3000 people participated in the demonstration who also called for withdrawal of troops fro Iraq and Afghanistan and opposed an attack on Iran. The report noted a connection between the demonstration and the Scottish National Party:
The demonstration began at the Scottish Parliament. When the Scottish National Party (SNP) and its leader Alex Salmond won the Scottish parliament elections in May one of their promises was to oppose Trident renewal. Many demonstrators were outraged at the sums spent on weapons while public services are being cut ‘“ as the SNP led Edinburgh council tried to do this summer.
Previous posts have discussed the generally favorable relationship between the MAB and the Scottish National Party but it is not known what position was taken by the MAB relative to the anger referred to above. The MAB, formerly the most visible Muslim organization in the U.K. appears to have been largely supplanted by the newer British Muslim Initiative (BMI) and is now active mainly in Scotland.