Madam,

Regarding the planned arrival of Syrian refugees, I very much understand and sympathise with the concerns expressed by councillors created by the Paris attacks but, while I absolutely agree that all screening procedures must be followed, I do not think these should stop the town or county welcoming genuine refugees in need of safety, and I very much hope Aberystwyth and Ceredigion councillors stay firm in their resolve.

These refugees will be coming from a camp either in Syria or on its borders where checks of their applications and status will have been carried out thoroughly by UN workers.

Daesh or IS are determined to disrupt and divide people, they want nothing more than to see Europeans everywhere reject all Muslims. They would love to see a civil war between communities in France and elsewhere. They have stated this as one of their main goals.

All but one of the terrorists in Paris were either French or Belgian, born and bred, and the one who had a Syrian passport had deposited it carefully near him, while he blew himself up...more than bizarre. When you plan to kill yourself, you don’t usually remember to take your passport with you, let alone place it tidily on the pavement beside you. This man might have been Syrian, or French coming back from a training camp in Raqqa. No-one knows yet.

However it is now established the passport had been modified, the photo and details added.

Did he mean to spread fear of all Syrians among us? Did he mean to suggest Syrian refugees were all potential terrorists?

Let’s stay rational, and welcome these families in need of help as we have planned.

This will be a better response than any singing of anthems.

Yours etc,Marie-Helene Thomas.Aberystwyth.