A mob of young Islamist extremists allegedly threatened to hang anti-war campaigner George Galloway last night as as the country's most bitter election battle spilled into violence on the streets of the East End.

The Respect candidate, who is fighting Labour’s Oona King for the Bethnal Green and Bow seat in East London, was meeting locals in a tenant association’s room last night with his daughter, Lucy, when a 40-strong group of militants burst in, his spokesman said today.

Locking the door behind them, the mob allegedly held Mr Galloway and his daughter captive for a few minutes and made threats.

"They said he was a false prophet and that was punishable by death," spokesman Ron McKay told Times Online. "They said for him that would be the gallows - that was presumably a play on his name."

Mr Galloway was only rescued by the arrival of two police constables, who escorted him outside to the car of his son-in-law Jay, who had called the police when he saw the gang arrive at the building on Globe Road in Bethnal Green.

Last night's incident was the second of the day involving young Islamic radicals out to disrupt the general election campaign. Earlier, a mob of protesters believed to be followers of the radical cleric Omar Bakri Mohammed stormed into the Regent's Park mosque in central London and disrupted a press conference by the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB)...

...Chanting slogans in English and Arabic, they stood on chairs and shouted insults at Iqbal Sacranie, the secretary-general of the MCB, accusing him of apostasy in urging people to vote. They then handed out leaflets which read: "Voting for any political party ... will guarantee your seat in hellfire forever."

The leaflets carried photographs of Tony Blair, Michael Howard, Charles Kennedy and George Galloway, describing them all as "shayateen (devils), crooks, criminals and false gods". An internet address was provided for the Saviour Sect, but an announcement was later posted on the website denying any involvment in the incident.

Police were called to the fracas at the Regents Park mosque, during which one protester seemed to throw a punch at Mr Sacranie. A 25-year-old man was arrested.

Mr McKay said that he believed the same group, the now disbanded El Muhajiroun, was responsible for both incidents...