Far-Right Britain First Defector Matthew Lester Visits Mosque to Repent

A man has said he acted like an "unwitting twat" by joining anti-Islam group Britain First and has visited a mosque to make up for his actions.

Matthew Lester defected from the far-right splinter group and decided to visit a local mosque in south-east London in order to build "unity."

He recounted his pilgrimage of penitence on Twitter and posted photos of him with a Muslim, giving the peace sign.

His trip went down well with users on the social network site, who congratulated Lester for his stance.

Speaking to Huffington Post, the 25-year-old condemned anti-Islam group Britain First for allegedly targeting not only extremists, but ordinary Muslims.

"I thought it was for the people but found out it was more about publicity. Basically it was publicity stunts more than getting anything done and tackling issues.

"They're not just going after extremists, they're going after Muslims."

Now Lester has said he wants to reach out to other faiths to increase unity between communities.

Britain First is a far-right splinter group from the British National Party, which also draws supporters from the English Defence League.

Previous stunts by the organisation included driving military jeeps around near Mosques, in response to so-called 'Muslim patrols' in east London.

The group has been riven by internal dissent, including the resignation of its leader, James Dowson. He quit in July claiming "racists and extremists" were joining up.