Mosque security to increase

Henry McLeish will visit the mosque in Glasgow

Security at Scotland's mosques will be increased, says First Minister Henry McLeish.

He made the announcement on Thursday during a SNP-inspired debate about the bombing of Afghanistan by US and UK troops.

Mr McLeish told the chamber that on Friday he would detail moves to increase security.

Henry McLeish: To announce mosque security plan

He said it was a response to the increased threat of attacks against Muslims in the wake of the US attacks.

Mr McLeish said: "The Muslim community needs to be assured that the executive and everyone in the parliament is committed to their concerns and their safety.

"Those who seek to damage and vandalise our mosques will be tackled."

The debate was opened by Nationalist leader John Swinney who said his party's support of the bombing of Afghanistan was "conditional" on aid getting through to starving refugees.

'Conditional support'

He stopped short of calling for an end to the military action.

The MSP wants to see a "safe humanitarian corridor" enabling life-saving food to get through.

An aid truck makes its way to the refugees (Unicef)

Mr Swinney said: "There is concern that while the military action is pursued it is impossible to deliver the scale of humanitarian effort that is required to alleviate the suffering of the Afghan population.

"The SNP has made clear in this conflict that our support for military action is conditional.

"We believe any action should be targeted, based on evidence and determined to bring the perpetrators of the atrocities in the United States to justice.

"We have said there should be a specific UN security council mandate for military action and that there should be no widening of the conflict beyond Afghanistan."

'Taleban to blame'

Mr Swinney added that there had to be "a significant humanitarian effort on a much greater".

"The military action is being pursued with vigour but the humanitarian effort is faltering and faltering badly," said Mr Swinney, who was speaking in a SNP-inspired parliamentary debate on Thursday.

Mr McLeish, responded to Mr Swinney by saying that Afghanistan's ruling Taleban regime, and not the bombing campaign, was at the root of preventing humanitarian aid getting through.

John Swinney: "Conditional support"

Tory leader David McLetchie said there was a danger of losing sight of the fact that the conflict was started with "an act of war" against the people of America by "a group of fanatics who use religion as a justification for their murderous acts".

And he warned: "If this new outbreak of barbarity is to be defeated, it is essential that the civilised world unites against the scourge of terrorism."

Mr McLetchie went on to criticise the SNP for their "ambiguous" stance.

"The SNP seems to be moving towards a position of calling for a scaling down of military action on the basis that this will somehow help the humanitarian effort.

"While I do not doubt that the sentiments behind this are well-intentioned, I believe that they are also misguided," he said.

Action 'must continue'

Mr McLetchie also criticised executive plans to introduce a law against religious hatred.

David McLetchie: Critical of religious hate law

"There is a danger that the profusion of such offences threatens freedom of speech," he said.

The Liberal Democrats, Mike Rumbles, insisted that military strikes must continue and urged MSPs to rally behind British troops.

The MSP for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine said: "We regret that this crisis could not have been resolved peacefully, but given the obstinacy of the Taleban government, there was no other option.

"The Taleban harboured bin Laden in defiance of international opinion."

Mr Rumbles said he supported the idea of a humanitarian aid corridor.