In the article, headlined "We owe Arabs nothing", Kilroy-Silk scorned the Arab world. It had contributed almost nothing to civilisation, he said, and he referred to Arabs as "suicide bombers, limb-amputators, women repressors".

The attack could hardly have come at a worse time for the sensitive relationship between the British Muslim community and British leaders, following the 11 September attacks and continuing security alerts.

The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) urged the Crown Prosecution Service and the Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith, to investigate the article. Complaints were also lodged with the BBC, the Commission for Racial Equality and the Press Complaints Commission.

In his article, Kilroy-Silk began by expressing contempt at the anti-war campaigners of the Iraq war. He said: "What do [Arabs] think we feel about them? That we adore them for the way they murdered more than 3,000 civilians on September 11 and then danced in the hot, dusty streets to celebrate the murders?

"That we admire them for the cold-blooded killings in Mombasa, Yemen and elsewhere? That we admire them for being suicide bombers, limb-amputators, women repressors? I don't think the Arab states should start a debate about what is really loathsome."