VJ CONNOR (HAS Aug 15) rightly argues that we cannot negotiate with Daesh (Islamic State).

There can be no compromise with this fanatical death-cult. Their ultimate objective is to establish an oppressive Islamist caliphate across the entire globe.

The aim of their terrorist attacks in Britain is to divide us, encouraging hostility towards Muslims so as to persuade them there is no place for them in Western societies.

Sadly, they are helped in this endeavour by Islamophobic extremists, who abuse and attack law-abiding Muslims and their mosques.

The problem is not, as Mr Connor suggests, caused by “unplanned immigration.”

The emergence of Daesh is the consequence of Western interventions, especially in Iraq and Libya. Young British Muslims, typically with a history of drug abuse and petty crime, and looking for purpose and meaning in their lives, are not driven to terrorism by immigrants, but by the slick online propaganda machine of Daesh.

People of all faiths and none, including Muslims, must remain united against this menace. The last thing we should be doing is playing into the hands of Daesh by blaming immigrants, or Muslims in general, for atrocities perpetrated by a small minority among them.

Pete Winstanley, Durham