ONE of Hampshire’s top politicians has criticised the “crazy fools” insulting Muslims following the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby.

New Forest West MP Desmond Swayne has condemned the current wave of anti-Muslim incidents, including attacks on mosques, which began shortly after the young soldier was killed in Woolwich.

Writing in his weekly blog Mr Swayne says: “I have regular correspondents on the subject of Islam.

Read the full blog here

“Some are Internet ‘trolls’ who send me e-mails filled with complete drivel that they have picked up from nasty right-wing websites.

“Then there are a few ‘churchy’ folk who send me considered but equally misguided stuff peppered with quotes taken out of context from the Koran and enclosing articles from evangelical publications.”

Mr Swayne says the vast majority of Muslims live ordinary lives and are often the main victims of Islamist violence around the world.

He adds: “Anyone who insults a Muslim or attacks a mosque in the wake of the disgusting murder of Drummer Rigby is nothing but a fool and doing the very work of the terrorist.

“It is their desire and intent that our tolerant, easy-going ‘live and let live’ way of life would be extinguished.”

Mr Swayne, 56, was formerly Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Prime Minister, David Cameron. In 2003 he served in Iraq as a major in the Territorial Army.

His latest blog is headlined “Crazy Fools Who Insult Muslims”.

But he also condemns what he describes as the “inarticulate drivel” spouted in defence of Drummer Rigby’s murder, saying it ignores two fundamental truths.

“First, in a democracy if you don’t like the Government’s policy then you organise politically to change it,” he says.

“Second, our military interventions have been deployed in defence of Muslims. Without it, Slobodan Milosevic would have ethnically cleansed Kosovo and Saddam Hussein would have extended his murderous regime to Kuwait.

“Muslim men and women would still be living under the Taliban reign of terror in Afghanistan and hundreds of thousands of Muslims would have been massacred by Col Gaddafi in Benghazi.”