Islamic militant groups were condemned by political and faith leaders at a peace symposium which drew 1,000 people to Merton on Saturday.

International development secretary Justine Greening and energy and climate change secretary Ed Davey gave speeches at the National Peace Symposium in Morden's Baitul Futuh Mosque.

Delivering the keynote speech, the Caliph of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community (AMC), His Holiness Hazrat Masroor Ahmad, urged political leaders to exert their influence on the Muslim world and stop Islamic militant groups from spreading their message of hate.

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Ed Davey speaks at the meeting

He condemned the activities of ISIS and other extremist groups as "entirely un-Islamic."

He said: "We see a disturbing number of Muslim youths from Europe and other parts of the world who have somehow come to believe that ISIS represents a true picture of Islam and support their ideology. For these reasons they have resolved to help and even fight for them.

"For any peaceful Muslim who understands his faith this is a cause of great sorrow and despair."

The event marked 125 years since the establishment of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community - a minority Muslim group founded in 1889 by Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad.

Ed Davey said: "It is important that we are coming together under your leadership your Holiness tonight to be a politics of unity, of people coming together, to talk together to work together, to pray together for a world of unity."

This year's International Peace Prize was presented to Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow, founder and chief executive of Mary's Meals, for his work to provide food and education to children in the developing world.

Commending the AMC's global charitable efforts, MP Justine Greening said: "A big thank you for all of the work that you do not just for our local communities but communities all over the world I know how much difference it makes."