Any serious stratagem to fight terrorism must include the fact that, unless the core issues that spawn terrorism are dealt with in a wise and effective way, the danger would always be there. We have to understand that modern Britain is part of the global village. And that, in a way, the empire has come home. Britain's 2 million Muslims faithfully reproduce all the complexities found in the wider Muslim world. Gone are the days of empire when there was no backyard accountability for some of the atrocious foreign policies Britain adopted. Today any foreign policy adventure perceived as unjust and unreasonable is likely to be challenged by any means necessary.

In the global village the struggle for hearts and minds has become extremely adversarial and polarised. Television and the internet have made a profound change. People no longer seek balanced or insightful reports: what they want, and get, is affirmation and confirmation of their primary beliefs, regardless of how extreme and ridiculous they are.

It is not enough for the Foreign Office to set up Faith Units. There must also be an understanding that a reasonable number of British citizens feel passionately about the consequences of the decisions we make overseas, like the war against Iraq.

But the mindset that leads to violence and terrorism is never simple. I am afraid that all the signs point to the "when" of the Metropolitan police commissioner, Sir John Stevens. It will not only be about Chechnya, Palestine and Kashmir but also Oldham, East London and Bradford. The process of alienation and marginalisation of our young is alarming. The majority are deeply scarred by the wounds of living in a society that is racist and Islamophobic.

If the war against terrorism is to stand any chance it must deal with the crux of the problem. The government needs to seriously tackle the issues of poverty, exclusion and discrimination that have made British Muslims the most impoverished group in the country. Unless a serious strategy is adopted, aimed at genuine social and spiritual cohesion to liberate the communities from their present status as the new underclass, I am afraid there is little hope for a safe Britain tomorrow.

But the radicalism and extremism found within the Muslim community is not the result of only political, social and economic alienation and marginalisation. It is also about how a great faith has been hijacked and debased by forces obsessed by power and its abuse. Any anti-terrorism strategy needs to have qualified warriors prepared to combat those who would reduce a great faith to a figment of their neurosis.

Our young people need a vision to inspire and uplift them, charismatic leadership and a society that not only tolerates and respects them but also values and appreciates their chosen identity.

Demonising groups like Hizb ut-Tahrir, who are as far away from terrorism as possible, while giving credibility to organisations that produce the kind of literature that lead to a Taliban mentality, betrays the ignorance of both the media and government departments.

Unless Britain has other ideas about its Muslims, it must wake up to the reality that the Islam it invests in today is going to produce the kind of Muslim it will get tomorrow. The authorities need to go on being serious in their dialogues with leaders of the community from as varied a background as possible. But the priority should be to seek those who represent and are well-versed about traditional Islamic scholarship and understanding - not accountants, retired GPs, failed activists and dangerous sloganeers.

Chairman Mao said the best way to catch a fish is to deny it the water in which it swims. "The guerrilla fighting against injustice is like a fish: in order to defeat it you must deny it the comfort of the waters of the community," he said.

At the moment there is no hope British Muslims - ostracised from their faith, consumed by anger, marginalised and alienated from society - will make the ideal partners we need to fight terrorism. So we need Islam - that great faith of reason, peace, truth and love - to make a comeback to our shores. Without it the future is scary, very scary. For it will mean sharing the country with a bunch of dangerous fools and clowns.

· Fuad Nahdi is editor-in-chief of Q-News, the Muslim magazine