BBC News Discussing hardline Islamist ideologies and violent extremism isn’t exactly the stuff of fashionable London parties. But the British Museum is on Tuesday the surprising venue for theologians, thinkers and socialite Jemima Khan, all coming together to support the launch of a new think tank to counter Al Qaeda’s world-view. And this seemingly bizarre gathering exposes the question at the heart of the whirlwind romance between the Quilliam Foundation and policymakers. Is the launch of this campaigning organisation a step forward in the battle of ideas – or just another group with some kind of official pat on the head – but no credibility on the street? Since the London bombings of July 2005 a whole string of Muslim organisations have come forward, claiming to have the answers to violent extremism. Dominic Casciani reports.
