Paranoia adds to tension

Sparkhill, where people largely live happily together, is developing a siege mentality.

, born and bred there, reports.

Evidence of Islamic extremism during my five years at school in Sparkhill were largely limited to the "Rushdie must die" graffiti that adorned the toilet walls.

But these references to author Salman Rushdie, who notoriously defamed the Muslim profit Mohammed in his 1988 book Satanic Verses, seem tame in comparison to allegations surrounding the latest terror arrests.

Among the centres of intense police activity yesterday were the Maktabah book store and Blade Communications internet cafe.

Located on the bustling Stratford Road in the heart of Sparkhill, both are only a few minutes' drive from where I grew up and yards from Moseley School, which I attended from 1989 to 1994.

At a rough guess, about 70 per cent of my fellow pupils were Muslim, almost all second-generation Pakistani.

Even at a relatively young age, it was clear that religion played a much bigger role in the Pakistani community than it did among the general white population.

If I did ever feel at all isolated, however, it certainly had nothing to do with my Catholic background. Clearly, much has changed since my school days, and the perceived strain in relations between British Muslims and non-Muslims can generally be traced back to the attacks on the US in September 2001.

But on the surface, the mood on the streets of Sparkhill appears no different to 15 years ago.

Threat

Based on my own discussions, to all but a tiny fraction of this community the notion of kidnapping and then beheading a random member of public seems as alien and as senseless as it would to any reasonable person. If perceptions do differ though, it is in the scale of this disaffection.

Most Muslims in Sparkhill will tell you that the threat of terrorism from extremists in this country is minuscule compared to that which the Government would have us believe. Many feel that their community has been targeted by the raft of anti-terror legislation passed during the past five years and the series of major security operations that have followed.

A definite siege mentality has developed, and time and time again Muslims will tell you that they fear they could be the next to receive a knock on the door from armed police.

Whatever the truth behind the chilling nature of rumours surrounding yesterday's events, it is clear that these latest arrests will do nothing to change that.