Radical Islamists Deliberately Sabotaged Prevent Programme to Further Islamist Aims, Committee Heard

December 28, 2015, 4:05 am

≫ Next: Britain is becoming a nation of people afraid of their own shadows

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The Muslim boycott of the government’s anti-radicalisation programme Prevent is being masterminded by Islamists who see any counter-radicalisation programme as an attack on Islam itself, a Muslim organisation that works to de-radicalise young Muslims has said.

The Prevent program, which aims to divert those deemed to be at risk of radicalisation into support programmes, relies on referrals from the community to identify those at risk.

But figures from the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) show that of 3,288 referrals in the first half of 2015, only 280 (8.6 per cent) were from local communities.

Earlier this month the Waltham Forest Council of Mosques, which represents as many as 70,000 London Muslims announced it was boycotting the program, while imams from the east London borough of Newham said the program amounted to “spying on our young people”.

Their comments echo those of Dal Babu, a former senior police officer who helped found the National Association of Muslim Police. He said earlier this year: “Prevent has become a toxic brand and most Muslims are suspicious of what Prevent is doing.”

However, very little attention has been paid to why Prevent has become toxic within Muslim communities. The assumption is that it is down to a few cases in which Muslims have been unfairly treated with suspicion.

For example, The Times, in its reporting of the low level of community engagement yesterday, ran with this narrative, highlighting the case of one Muslim teenager who was asked whether he was affiliated with Islamic State two weeks after referring to eco-terrorism within a French language class discussion on environmental activism.

“The case is one of a number in which the desire to deal with extremism has had the opposite effect,” The Times said.

But in November, the Home Affairs Select Committee heard a very different, and so far little reported, explanation for the failure of the Prevent program within Muslim communities.

The Committee were told by Sara Khan, co-founder of Inspire, that the program was beingdeliberately sabotaged by Islamists who were determined to equate counter-radicalisation with an attack on Islam itself as a means to further their Islamist aims.

“You say that Dal Babu has argued that Prevent is a toxic brand,” Khan told the Committee. “I would argue that what is not often discussed in the media is, “How has it become toxic?” We know through the work that we have done that there are many examples of Muslim groups who have made it their mission to make Prevent toxic.

“We have lots of examples of groups that have gone into Muslim communities—” she began, before being interrupted by Keith Vaz, chairman of the Committee, who asked “Why are they doing that? Why are they going out of their way to attack this particular programme?”

Khan replied: “I think that is a very interesting question. The people who we have seen attacking it are Islamists, hate preachers—people who fundamentally believe that Islamist extremist ideology is a form of Islam.”

“[I]t is almost as if they feel that Prevent is about the criminalisation of Islam.”

Her evidence is borne out by the opponents of Prevent themselves, who have couched their criticism of Prevent in terms which make it clear that they believe the programme to be an attack on Islam.

In July, the Independent published a letter signed by 280 people, calling on the government to abandon Prevent. The signatories argued that, because Prevent is “fixated” on religion, “growing a beard, wearing a hijab or mixing with those who believe Islam has a comprehensive political philosophy are key markers used to identify ‘potential’ terrorism.”

They claimed that religious views were secondary to social circumstances in determining whether someone would be radicalised, writing: “The way Prevent conceptualises ‘radicalisation’ and ‘extremism’ is based on the unsubstantiated view that religious ideology is the primary driving factor for terrorism. Academic research suggests that social, economic and political factors, as well as social exclusion, play a more central role in driving political violence than ideology.”

The letters signatories included Haitham Al Haddad, a member of Hizb ut-Tahrir and the Sharia Council of Britain who believes apostates should be killed and supports FGM; Asim Quresi of CAGE, who called Jihadi John “a beautiful man;” and Shakeel Begg, a hardline Imam from a mosque where the killers of Lee Rigby worshipped.

But the argument made in that letter is the polar opposite of that made by Khan’s organisation Inspire, which has spent the last seven years working to de-radicalise young Muslims. They do this by working with Muslim women and giving them the theological tools to counter radical Islam.

Khan’s colleague Kalsoom Bashir, during the same evidence session, told the Home Affairs Committee: “You have hardening interpretations of religion and very literal interpretations of religion, and you also have views out there very openly saying, “This is a police state. The Government want to eliminate Islam. Basically, they want to stop us from practising our religion as well,” and that even living here is a temporary measure—that living among non-Muslims or the kafir, which is a very derogatory term for non-Muslims, is not the ideal.

“So, if you have to choose between being British and being Muslim, as well as all the other vulnerabilities that you have within your home—whether it is domestic violence or all the other issues that teenagers have—and you then have somebody saying, “We can offer you something much, much better,” it is very attractive.”

Khan named CAGE as an organisation which has been fear-mongering over Prevent in the Muslim Community. “Asim Qureshi from CAGE claimed the Government would consider taking children away as young as seven if those children attended demonstrations by the Stop the War group,” she said.

“It [CAGE} also argued, for example, that if you do not consent as parents to deradicalisation programmes, the state will take your children away. Even Nazir Afzal, the former chief crown prosecutor for the north-west, argued that this is just fearmongering of the very worst kind.

“Again, this is what brings me back to the idea of when we talk about Prevent being toxic—how has it been made toxic? There are people out there deliberately giving wrong information and scaring Muslim communities about what Prevent is about.”

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Britain is becoming a nation of people afraid of their own shadows

December 28, 2015, 4:13 am

≫ Next: British national who flew a Syrian migrant to the UK in his light aircraft is jailed

≪ Previous: Radical Islamists Deliberately Sabotaged Prevent Programme to Further Islamist Aims, Committee Heard

Britain must be the laughing stock of any fundamentalist Islamist who hopes one day to wipe Christianity from the face of the world.

We need never fear having our freedom, religion or heritage taken from us because we are too busy giving it away as fast as we can.

So hopelessly confused have we become that too many can no longer tell the difference between respecting other people’s faiths and customs and surrendering our own.

In Accrington the cross was removed from the crematorium in case it offended those of other faiths.

Can anyone imagine the uproar if a Christian were to ask for the removal of a religious symbol belonging to another faith?

This is a Christian country, built by Christians, its history and literature formed by Christianity and its ceremonies of state based on Christian observance.

It has an established church and Christianity is still the religion of the majority. Why should it remove crosses from anything at all?

Now, in an even dottier pronouncement, a professor of faith and public policy at Goldsmiths, University of London, says that we shouldn’t heat up sausage rolls in the office microwave in case we offend the religious sensibilities of others.

So Professor, can a vegetarian insist on a ban on all meat? Those who support animal welfare a ban on halal products? Actually if reports are accurate his guidance probably means just that.

I am a Catholic who does not eat meat on Fridays but that does not confer a right to object to someone else heating up a burger in the kitchen. Whatever sort of joyless world are we creating?

Occasionally we tread too carefully. I was once invited out to lunch by a Jewish lady and as she was paying I thought it would be rude to order the very mouth-watering pork dish so I asked for lamb instead. When it came to her own order, she chose the pork!

So terrified are we now of upsetting people that a serviceman in uniform can be turned away from a hospital, a carer disciplined for saying “God bless” and a man demoted with a 40 per cent pay cut just for opposing gay marriage on his personal Facebook page.

Britain is turning into a nation of cringers afraid of their own shadows.

It is time to fight back and to fight hard. The citizens of Accrington made their views heard sufficiently strongly for the cross to be reinstated. Others should follow their example.

Any serviceman in uniform turned away from any public service should say: “I am staying right here and if you refuse to treat/serve/help me because of my uniform I shall sue and tell the newspapers as soon as I get back to base. Your choice.” Office workers should heat up whatever they like for lunch and ignore any instruction to the contrary.

Respect is one thing, subservience quite another.

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British national who flew a Syrian migrant to the UK in his light aircraft is jailed

December 28, 2015, 4:17 am

≫ Next: Refugees, bleeding hearts and the danger of moral bullying

≪ Previous: Britain is becoming a nation of people afraid of their own shadows

Ammar Khalifa, 49, is originally from Syria but now lives in Burton, Dorset
Amateur pilot flew to France to collect Syrian refugee Ebrahim Hamad
He brought him back to the UK but immigration officials caught the pair
Khalifa has now been jailed but migrant Hamad has been granted asylum

A British national who flew a Syrian migrant into the UK in his light aircraft has been jailed for three and a half years, while the man he helped has been granted asylum and now works in a hotel.

Ammar Khalifa, 49, who is originally from Syria but now lives in Burton, Dorset, flew to France to collect refugee Ebrahim Hamad as part of a 'carefully-thought out plan and enterprise'.

A court heard Khalifa squirrelled Hamad in his small plane and flew into Bournemouth Airport but the pair were spotted and stopped by immigration officials, leading to their arrest.

Ammar Khalifa, 49, (pictured) who is originally from Syria but now lives in Burton, Dorset, flew to France to collect refugee Ebrahim Hamad as part of a 'carefully-thought out plan and enterprise'

Bournemouth Crown Court heard moments after landing Mr Hamad got off the aircraft and was led by another man to an airport hangar where Khalifa's Mercedes car was parked.

The 49-year-old amateur pilot, who was unemployed at the time, then carried on taxing the plane before getting off.

But immigration officials had seen Mr Hamad leave the aircraft and when they quizzed the pilot about his trip he failed to declare his extra passenger.

Suspicious officials then found the asylum seeker hiding in Khalifa's car after carrying out a search.

Mr Hamad left Syria last year as he feared he would be killed and travelled through Turkey, Greece and France before meeting up with the defendant in Cherbourg, northern France, in January.

He has since been granted political asylum in the UK for five years and is working as an assistant manager at a hotel in Bournemouth, a court heard.

Khalifa has now been jailed after being found guilty of assisting unlawful immigration. He was told by a judge that it was 'essential we maintain control of our borders'.

Judge Peter Johnson said: 'You were trying to smuggle a Syrian national into the UK.

'What you did was a carefully thought out plan. You brought in someone you knew had no right to residence in this country.

'It is essential we maintain control of our borders and your actions deliberately circumvented those controls.

'Your role was pivotal, without you this enterprise simply wouldn't have taken place and such offences attract severe sentences.'

Bournemouth Crown Court heard Khalifa is a British citizen who came to the UK in the 1980s to study English and he liives in Burton with his wife, two daughters and three step-children.

He has worked in restaurants, laundries and offices in the past and had borrowed the plane from a family member.

During his trial Khalifa claimed he had met Mr Hamad, who was a stranger, in a cafe in Cherbourg and the two started talking about 'what has happened to our country.'

Khalifa claimed the refugee told him he wanted to see an ill relative in England and had shown him a French identification card.

He claimed it was only when they were 20 minutes from landing that Mr Hamad told Khalifa he was an illegal immigrant. He added he Mr Hamad off the plane before it had taxied as he was worried how it would look if he was found on board.

Leslie Smith, defending, said: 'Mr Khalifa has said 'I put my hands up, I have done something wrong, I have neglected my duties as a UK citizen.'

'Mr Khalifa has lost 18 family members in Syria since the conflict began, the youngest was 16.

'When he met up with Ebrahim Hamad the topic of conversation was 'what has happened to our country'.

'Mr Hamad left Syria because he didn't want to kill anyone. He said if he didn't join the government forces under conscription he would be killed and if he didn't join the anti-government forces he would be killed.'

Mr Smith claimed it was a 'one-off' incident and Khalifa received no financial gain from it.

Khalifa was jailed for three and a half years.

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Refugees, bleeding hearts and the danger of moral bullying

December 28, 2015, 8:30 am

≫ Next: 'Pathetic': Richard Dawkins in extraordinary outburst against Islam

≪ Previous: British national who flew a Syrian migrant to the UK in his light aircraft is jailed

Back in the Seventies, a psychologist from Yale University identified a phenomenon he called ‘groupthink’.

It’s what happens when people are so anxious to conform and get along together that they ignore alternative viewpoints and end up making bad decisions.

Anyone who’s sat in an office meeting knows how it can work. Someone comes up with an idea that, frankly, isn’t terribly good. But everyone around the table is so keen to avoid conflict and reach a consensus that they talk themselves into agreeing.

It feels disloyal to point out inconvenient flaws in the argument, or suggest other ways to solve the problem. Creativity and independent thinking are suppressed; facts that don’t fit are ignored.

Maybe I’m heartless. Maybe I’m mistaken. But I’m not convinced that the answer to the unfolding humanitarian disaster in Syria is to open our borders to tens of thousands of refugees

Before long, it starts to seem morally wrong to pipe up against the prevailing view.

Who wants to be the mean-spirited contrarian, standing in the way of progress and contradicting what all right-thinking people in the room clearly believe?

The irony is that everyone is so busy agreeing with each other, it makes them even more convinced they’re all wise and wonderful, when they’re blinding themselves to reality.

The Yale researcher, Irving Janis, suggested groupthink was one of the factors behind various fiascos involving the U.S. government — from the failure to anticipate Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor to the Bay Of Pigs invasion of Castro’s Cuba.

But I’m starting to wonder if there’s some dangerous groupthink going on in Britain right now, about the awful refugee crisis engulfing the Mediterranean.

Maybe I’m heartless. Maybe I’m mistaken. But I’m not convinced that the answer to the unfolding humanitarian disaster in Syria is to open our borders to tens of thousands of refugees.

I’m not sure it’s right for our country and I’m not sure, ultimately, it’s right for the Syrian people. And according to a number of polls conducted this week, I am not alone in having these concerns.

In one survey, only one in four people favoured taking in more than 10,000 refugees. In another, two-thirds said they were worried that the images of drowned children risked distorting the debate.

Yet on social media and among our broadcasters and politicians, there’s a very different consensus.

In fact, people in these groups —often privileged, always fond of their own voices — have been competing with each other to insist we offer asylum to ever greater numbers.

Those who haven’t joined this collective orgy of emotion are condemned as immoral, cruel and stupid.

This is itself a classic example of how Janis suggested groupthink works.

The group insiders not only over-rate their own goodness and competence, but they also dangerously underrate the abilities and humanity of those who dare disagree with them.

Now, I challenge anyone not to be moved by that awful image of poor little Aylan Kurdi lying dead in the surf.

Of course it was horrific. Of course we must seek a solution to this crisis and do what we can to ease the suffering of all involved.

However, I’ve worked with many refugees over my years as a doctor, including in outreach projects that helped asylum seekers. I am acutely aware they require a lot of support.

Inevitably, they will have witnessed and endured terrible things that can leave deep mental scars

The language barrier makes helping them cope with these problems especially hard. It’s no small burden for a country to take on.

It is entirely disingenuous for our leaders not to acknowledge that an influx of refugees has an impact on public services — not just in health but in education, housing and welfare.

What frustrates me is that the people so enthusiastically insisting that we welcome large numbers are not the ones who will feel the pain of all this.

The Twitter hashtag mob will, largely, continue with their comfortable lives untouched.

It’s mostly the poor and the sick who will feel the impact of refugees coming into their community.

There are countless other arguments here — not least the danger of encouraging yet more people to risk their lives on dangerous journeys.

But it’s not the specifics of these arguments that I’m worried about today. It’s the way influential groups in society are exerting pressure — consciously or unconsciously — to stop those arguments, and the feelings behind them, being expressed.

It’s psychologically unhealthy for people to think they have no right to voice sincerely held convictions. And at a practical level, it’s dangerously counterproductive for dissenting voices to be shouted down by a chorus of people desperate to show how caring they are.

Surely we need open, rational debate so we can thrash out solutions. If people’s worries or objections are unfounded, then expose them to the light and watch them wither away. Don’t try to shove them under the carpet.

The idea of groupthink was partially inspired by George Orwell’s nightmarish novel 1984, which used a similar term ‘doublethink’ to describe the way people manage to live with totally contradictory ideas to survive under a dystopian dictatorship.

But in the age of social media, fostering competitive compassion and intellectual conformity, groupthink may be a bigger threat than anything Orwell imagined.

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'Pathetic': Richard Dawkins in extraordinary outburst against Islam

December 29, 2015, 2:48 am

≫ Next: Red Ken squirmed on live TV as relatives of 7/7 victims called him a 'shameful

≪ Previous: Refugees, bleeding hearts and the danger of moral bullying

GETTY
Professor Richard Dawkins has launched a fresh attack on Islamic belief

The furious academic walked out of an interview when a Muslim journalist confirmed he personally believed the prophet Muhammad flew to heaven on a winged horse.

Dawkins, 74, author of best-seller The God Delusion, told the New Statesmen's Emad Ahmed that his belief was "pathetic" before angrily storming off.

Ridiculing belief in a winged horse is not bigotry, not Islamophobia, not racism. It's sober, decent, gentle, scientific realism
Professor Richard Dawkins

A shocked Ahmed said: "Dawkins is outspoken about religion, particularly Islam, so I was genuinely stunned when he decided to angrily walk away from our interview after I confirmed my beliefs in the revelations of the Islamic faith, calling my views "pathetic".

But the evolutionary biologist took to Twitter to defend his latest outburst.

He said: "I left when he said Muhammad rode a winged horse. A non-timewasting journalist needs at least SOME grasp of reality."

He added: "Ridiculing belief in a winged horse is not "bigotry", not "Islamophobia", not "racism". It's sober, decent, gentle, scientific realism."

The 74-year-old went on: "If you believe you're Napoleon or a poached egg, you're in an asylum.

"If you believe in winged horses you're a New Statesman journalist."

GETTY
Richard Dawkins has defended his comments about Islam

TWITTER
Richard Dawkins has defended his comments on Twitter

The attack on Islamic belief is the latest in a long line by Dawkins. Last month he said Islamic culture could "go to hell" on a live TV chat show in the United States when referring to some practices in Islam, such as women being made to wear burkhas.

Nor is it is not the first time Dawkins has attacked the belief in the ascension of Muhammad.

In an interview with Al Jazeera journalist Mehdi Hasan, filmed at the Oxford Union in 2012 - - Dawkins mocked the host telling him his belief was"anti-scientific and wrong".

The Qur'an briefly refers to the Isra and Miraj, two parts of a night journey Muhammad took during a single night in the year 621.

The "physical and spiritual journey" sees the Islamic prophet travel on the steed Buraq to the "furthest mosque" where he leads other prophets in prayer.

He then ascends to heaven in the Miraj journey where he speaks to God, who gives instructions to take back to the faithful.

Dawkins - who was once named the world's leading thinker by Prospect Magazine - has been equally critical of other religions.

He has described Judaism as a "tribal cult of a single fiercely unpleasant God, morbidly obsessed with sexual restrictions".

And he once claimed that being raised a Catholic and taught to fear hellfire is "worse than child abuse."

Just today he Tweeted: "Culturally the UK is a Christian country. But schools should teach comparative religion and atheism. They should NEVER indoctrinate."

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Red Ken squirmed on live TV as relatives of 7/7 victims called him a 'shameful

December 29, 2015, 2:54 am

≫ Next: Alleged jihadi tourist caught with a stash of gun training videos after returning from Syria 'was a paid MI5 helper'

≪ Previous: 'Pathetic': Richard Dawkins in extraordinary outburst against Islam

Former London mayor has been branded 'shameful' by victims' relatives
Labour veteran squirmed on TV but repeatedly refused to apologise
Mr Livingstone pinned the blame for the 2005 bombings on Tony Blair
He said: 'We have to realise they didn't do it without a political reason'

This is the moment Ken Livingstone squirmed on live TV today after relatives of 7/7 victims called him a 'stupid man' for claiming murderous terrorists 'gave their lives for what they believed'.

The former mayor of London told two heartbroken families he would not apologise for 'telling the truth' - that the suicide bombers who killed 52 acted 'in protest at our invasion of Iraq'.

Relatives of two of the victims called him a 'stupid man' and unpatriotic, claiming the Labour veteran is intent on 'legitimising terrorism' and 'has no sympathy for victims' families'.

Uncomfortable: Ken Livingston was confronted on live TV today with criticism from the families of those who died on 7/7

Confrontation: Mr Livingstone had to listen as the BBC presenter read out the criticisms - but the Labour veteran refused to apologise

Upset: The families of Michelle Otto, who died at Kings Cross on 7/7 and David Foulkes, who died at Edgware Road, have called Ken Livingstone 'shameful'

Last week Mr Livingstone, a key ally of Jeremy Corbyn, pinned the blame for the 2005 bombings – Britain's worst terrorist attack – on former Labour prime minister Tony Blair.

He told the BBC's Question Time programme on Thursday night: 'When Tony Blair was told by the security services, 'If you go into Iraq, we will be a target for terrorism,' and he ignored that advice and it killed 52 Londoners.'

He also said that the four killers 'gave their lives – they said what they believed' - but critics have accused him of being a 'shameful self-publicist'.

This morning Mr Livingstone appeared on the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire show and was confronted by emails from those who lost their loved-ones.

Dania Gorodi, 58, whose sister Michelle Otto, 46, was killed in Russell Square, said: 'It's been 10 years and we have dealt with our grief but we live it again when we hear comments like that.

It's not an intelligent comment, it's not sympathetic, It's the comments of a stupid man who wants to upset people. He seems to be ashamed of England'.

Horror: Aftermath of the 7/7 atrocity, which claimed 52 lives 10 years ago - Britain's worst ever terrorist attack

Graham Foulkes, 63, whose son David, 22, died at Edgware Road Tube station, said: 'Not only is he accepting their excuses he is legitimitising terrorism.

He is giving them an identity they don't deserve, As a senior politician in the Labour party i really struggle how he can do that.

He has no sympathy for the victims' families at all - it's shameful self-publicising'.

Mr Livingstone looked flustered as the emails were read to him and told them 'not to believe the press'.

When the presenter said: 'They are listening to what you said' he stumbled over his words and said: 'I said I denounce what they did and I put in thousands more police to make it more difficult to do that.

We did a lot of work with victims families and the survivors but we have to realise they didn't do it without a political reason'.

Families of the dead have queued up to criticise him, especially as Mr Corbyn has been put in joint charge of reviewing Labour's defence police.

Today he said Britain should not bomb ISIS in Syria because it will make terrorists more likely to 'come here and kill us'.

He told the Today programme: 'No-one is going to get safer. We are going to get more at risk. They will be more determined to come here and kill us.'

John Taylor, 66, whose daughter Carrie, 24, died in the Aldgate Tube bombing, said he had discussed the bombings with Mr Blair, adding: 'I don't blame him one bit. Livingstone has once again put his foot in his mouth.

I think comments like these are playing into the hands of Islamic State and Al Qaeda.'

'A new low': Ken Livingstone has been branded 'shameful' by relatives of 7/7 victims after claiming the bombers 'gave their lives' in the terrorist attacks that killed 52

Sean Cassidy, 67, whose son Ciaran died at Russell Square, said: 'I wouldn't like to give these terrorists any political credence. They are just killers.'

Mr Livingstone clashed with other panellists on Question Time over his views. Comedian Matt Forde told him: 'The idea you can absolve the people that killed those innocent Londoners by blaming it on Tony Blair is shameful.'

Mr Livingstone responded: 'Well you can, because go and look at what they put on their websites – they did those killings because of our invasion of Iraq.' Mr Forde hit back, accusing Mr Livingstone of 'accepting the terrorists' propaganda'.

John McTernan, who served as a Number Ten aide under Mr Blair, described Mr Livingstone's comments as 'disgusting', and 'grounds for expulsion' from the Labour Party.

Labour MP Ian Austin said Mr Livingstone's comments were 'a total disgrace', while fellow Labour MP Mike Gapes said: 'Despicable Livingstone has sunk to a new low.'

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Alleged jihadi tourist caught with a stash of gun training videos after returning from Syria 'was a paid MI5 helper'

December 29, 2015, 2:58 am

≫ Next: Sparkhill gangster nicknamed 'Big Timer' headed heroin smuggling gang who dealt in 'White Gold'

≪ Previous: Red Ken squirmed on live TV as relatives of 7/7 victims called him a 'shameful

Mustafa Abdullah, 34, was stopped at the airport on his return from Syria
Police searched his home and allegedly discovered terror-related material
Father-of-four had an audio file on guerilla warfare training, a court heard

On trial: Muslim convert Mustafa Abdullah, 34

An alleged Jihadi tourist who was caught with a stash of gun training videos after returning from Syria has told a court he was a paid MI5 informant.

Police discovered terror-related material at the south London home of Muslim convert Mustafa Abdullah, 34, after seizing his mobile phone when he landed in the UK last year, it was heard.

Jurors at the Old Bailey have seen a photograph of Abdullah with an automatic rifle slung over his shoulder and various instructional videos on gun-fighting, drills and how to use Glock pistols.

The father-of-four also had an audio file on fitness training for guerilla warfare and useful equipment for combat operations, the court has heard.

Abdullah, an engineer, is on trial at the Old Bailey charged with 14 counts of possessing documents or records useful to a terrorist and one of having a gun for a terrorist purpose.

Giving evidence in his defence, Abdullah said he first became involved with the British security service between January and August 2008.

His lawyer Andrew Hill asked: 'What was the purpose of the contact?'

The father-of-four replied: 'Basically, they were saying, "can you spy for us?". I said Muslims don't spy, however, I will assist you. I don't hang around with people like that but if I do, I will let you know.'

Abdullah told jurors he was paid£10,000, adding: 'I didn't need the money but they wanted to give it, so I took it.'

Three months before he went to Syria, MI5 agent 'Graham' called him up and asked for a meeting, but he rebuffed him, the defendant said.

Earlier, Abdullah became overcome with emotion as he started to tell jurors how he converted to Islam in 2000, having been born and bred in the UK to a family of mixed Jamaican-Indian heritage.

He has three children by his first wife, Souriya, and a fourth child with a second wife.

In 2008, he and Souriya went to the United Arab Emirates where Abdullah worked as a refrigeration engineer and the couple were photographed shooting hand guns on a range.

Then in August 2012, the couple went to live and work in Yemen and the defendant bought a gun with a licence.

He told jurors: 'You can buy a handgun in the market place like you can buy a cabbage.'

Asked to explain the attraction of firearms, he said: 'My wife said to me, "it's like I like handbags".

If I was in America I could fire guns all day, no problem. I love guns. I cannot explain it. They look nice.'

On a photograph with a Smith and Wesson, he told jurors: 'It's embarrassing. I deleted them. I did not want my wife to see them and the police extracted them from my computer.'

Asked if he ever had any intention of harming anybody in this country, Abdullah said: 'I'm your local engineer. When I come into your home and fix your appliances, I will make you laugh.'

Abdullah denies wrongdoing.

The trial continues.

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Sparkhill gangster nicknamed 'Big Timer' headed heroin smuggling gang who dealt in 'White Gold'

December 29, 2015, 3:02 am

≫ Next: Married couple with ‘common interest’ in violent jihad are GUILTY of plotting 7/7-style suicide attack on Westfield shopping centre

≪ Previous: Alleged jihadi tourist caught with a stash of gun training videos after returning from Syria 'was a paid MI5 helper'

Bordesley Green gym boss Rafiq Mohammed, 38, made millions by importing drugs from the continent

gangster nicknamed ‘Big Timer’ led a Birmingham drugs cartel which made millions of pounds by importing heroin into the UK from the continent.

To the outside world Rafiq Mohammed, 38, made his living as manager of Rampage Fitness in Bordesley Green.

Yet away from the world of fitness he was flexing his muscles in the criminal underworld by running a gang smuggling huge quantities of heroin into Birmingham, heroin dubbed ‘White Gold’ and believed to have been imported from Spain.

As the money flowed in the crime family boss splashed out on luxury holidays and cars including an Audi Q7 with the registration plate B055 BT - (Boss Big Timer).

And crime was a family business.

His brother Shafiq Mohammed, 28, acted as his deputy, alongside garage repair worker Mohammed Nasir, 26.

They used telecoms worker Ibrar Uddin, 43, and Ravinder Mattu, 45, as their ‘money men’ to launder their cash, while kebab shop boss Juma Aziz, 41, and travel agent Mohammed Rashid, 39, acted as couriers.

Yet the gang was brought to justice by the Serious and Organised Crime Unit of West Midlands Police, who used surveillance, forensics, CCTV and phone technology to nail the crooks.

On February 12 Rafiq was seen meeting Uddin at a restaurant in Ladypool Road , Birmingham. Aziz later arrived before driving off with a bag.

Traffic officers later stopped his car in the Winson Green area. Inside was a JD sports bag containing £57,460 in cash, neatly bundled with multi-coloured elastic bands.

Then on March 21, Audi Spider R8 owner Uddin met Rashid at Rampage Fitness gym.

Police later stopped Rashid in the Alum Rock area and found a Next carrier bag containing £46,290 in cash.

On July 29, police spotted Rafiq and Mattu making an exchange in Hangleton Drive.

Mattu was later stopped in the Bilston area and had a bag with £5,000 cash in it. A police raid at his home discovered a further £34,900 under a wardrobe

On August 20 Rafiq was seen in Lea End, driving a Touran and met Mark Calvert.

Detectives later stopped Calvert and found he had 80gs of heroin on him, with a street value of more than £20,000.

He later pleaded guilty to possession of Class A drugs with intent to supply and was jailed for eight years.

Police finally swooped on the brothers on October 16 where they were spotted carrying large bags and holdalls in and out of a ‘safe house’ property in Lea End.

Rafiq was detained first and was found with a small quantity of heroin and crack.

But a search of the flat uncovered heroin and dealing equipment. Pieces of brown tape wrappings were also discovered with the word ‘Oro Blanco’ - Spanish for White Gold.

The packaging was believed to have come from six packages of drugs, each weighing half a kilo, and with the fingerprints of Shafiq and Nasir on them.

A raid at Rafiq’s home found a large quantity of cash, a money counting machine, heroin and multiple mobile phones next to his bed.

Shafiq and Nasir went on the run to Thailand and Pakistan, but police were waiting for them when they returned to the UK.

The men have now all been jailed after a trial at Leicester Crown Court.

Rafiq Mohammed, from Hangleton Drive Sparkhill, was sentenced to ten years for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs and money laundering;

Shafiq Mohammed, from Jacob Place, Edgbaston, was jailed for six years for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs;

Mohammed Nasir, from Downey Close Sparkbrook , was jailed for six years for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs;

Ibrar Uddin, from Wilton Road, Sparkhill, received two years for money laundering;

Ravinder Mattu, from Bate Street, Wolverhampton, received two years for money laundering;

Juma Aziz, from Clarance Road, Handsworth, received an eight-month sentence, suspended for two years for money laundering;

And Mohammed Rashid, from Sheldon Heath Road, Sheldon, was handed eight months, suspended for two years, for money laundering.

Speaking after the case, Detective Chief Inspector Simon Wallis, who heads the Serious and Organised Crime Unit, said: “The hypocrisy of these driving around in their cars, posing as successful, when they are actually peddling misery is an aberration to those whose loved ones are hooked and an affront to normal hard working folk.

“This was a significant group, but there is much more work to be done. The fight against drugs is far from over.”

↧

Married couple with ‘common interest’ in violent jihad are GUILTY of plotting 7/7-style suicide attack on Westfield shopping centre

December 30, 2015, 2:25 am

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Mohammed Rehman, 25, plotted attack on London on anniversary of 7/7
Jihadi dream was funded by payday loans taken out by Sana Ahmed Khan
Secretly-married pair bought chemicals and practised explosions in garden
Rehman was arrested after posting for advice about foiled plot on Twitter
More than 10kg of explosives found in raid at home in Reading, Berkshire
'Low life' Rehman and graduate Khan, 24, will be sentenced later this week

An aspiring suicide bomber and his secret wife who had a 'common interest' in violent jihad have been found guilty of planning an ISIS-inspired terror attack on London after testing lethal bombs in their back garden.

Mohammed Rehman, 25, planned to blow up either Westfield shopping centre or the London Underground to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the 7/7 bombings.

His jihadi dream was funded by his wife Sana Ahmed Khan, 24, who used payday loans to buy fertiliser which her husband engineered into bombs.

The court heard how the couple, who wed in secret in a traditional Islamic ceremony, immersed themselves in ISIS and Al Qaeda propaganda and idolised 7/7 bomber Shehzad Tanweer.

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Sana Khan, 24, has been found guilty of preparing acts for terror after abandoning her plans of becoming a teacher to join her secret husband in jihad

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Mohammed Rehman, 25 (left) and Sana Ahmed Khan, 24 (right) have been found guilty of planning an ISIS-inspired terror attack on London after testing lethal bombs in their back garden

Their plot was only foiled when Rehman - who called himself the 'silent bomber' - sent a tweet asking for advice on which was the best target

They even test fired one of their bombs in Rehman's back garden and recorded it on film.

Their plot was only foiled when Rehman - who called himself the 'silent bomber' - sent a tweet asking for advice on which was the best target.

As their plans gathered pace, Rehman asked his followers: 'Westfield shopping centre or London underground?'

The tweet - sent from a profile showing a photograph of Jihadi John - was accompanied by a link to the al Qaeda uncensored media release about the July 7 atrocities.

Officers then raided Rehman's home in Reading, Berkshire, where they found 10kg of nitrate explosives - double the amount of powder used in the failed 21/7 London bombings.

The prosecution said the would-be bomber was just days away from completing the device which would have caused multiple casualties in the capital.

Today, the pair - who turned on one another during the trial - were found guilty of preparing terrorist acts following three days of deliberations.

Rehman was also convicted of possessing an article for terrorist purposes following the trial at the Old Bailey. The are due to be sentenced later this week.

During the trial, the court was told how the couple had met as teenagers and went on to marry without their families' knowledge.

Despite living separately, they bonded over their shared extreme ideology and started plotting the 'catastrophic' attack on the capital.

Prosecutor Tony Badenoch QC told the court that the pair shared a 'common interest' in violent jihad.

Rehman's online research showed he approved and 'wished to play his own part'. He had written out a pledge of allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and also stashed a Jihadi John style hunting knife in his bedroom.

He also had explosives and bomb-making manuals on his phone and computer.

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Blast: Footage shown to the jury showed the testing of a homemade bomb built by Rehman

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During the trial, the jury was shown footage of Rehman testing the home-made bomb in his back garden

Meanwhile, Khan helped fuel his violent ambition by paying for chemicals bought on eBay, the court was told.

Mr Badenoch said their secret marriage showed the couple to be 'deceitful' and adept at leading a 'double life'.

'They wanted, this needy couple, to have a sense of purpose and they found one as you have seen,' he said. 'It isn't such a surprise they were such fertile ground for violent Islamic extremism.'

The suspicions of security services were aroused in May this year when Rehman began spewing out ISIS supporting rants against the West on Twitter.

In one tweet, Rehman referred to the tenth aniversary of the 7/7 attacks and told a follower: 'Are you actually trying? Why don't you head to the London Underground on the 7th of July if YOU got the balls.'

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Rehman posted another photograph of explosives on his Twitter account saying 'not bad for an amateur!'

In other tweets, he boldly stated 'I'm preparing for an Istishaadi [martyrdom] operation' and bragged: 'Now I just make explosives in preparations for kuffar lol & when I've made the required amount I'll be wearing them on my chest'.

An undercover officer calling himself Abu Mohammed then posed as a fellow extremist to lure Rehman into sharing his plans.

The officer said Rehman's boast that he was 'locked and loaded' raised concerns, and when he made contact Rehman told him: 'The only most effective attack would be a martyrdom op'.

Police swooped on Rehman and Khan on May 28 - just over a month before the anniversary of the 7/7 attacks which killed 52 Londoners.

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Rehman tweeted from an account calling himself 'Silent Bomber'

Rehman fled his home to a nearby Co-op where he was stopped by armed police, despite trying to kick and punch his way out.

He insisted there was nothing dangerous in his home, despite having tweeted that he had 'a surprise waiting for them'.

He also claimed to have rigged up a bomb which could be triggered at the touch of a button at his bedside, saying: 'Nobody gets in the way of my jihad.'

Officers found were a Jihadi John-style hunting knife and chemicals for a massive bomb which was days from completion.

After his arrest, Rehman claimed he was only pretending to be a 'Jihadi warrior'. The couple also turned on each other during a trial at the Old Bailey, accusing each other of being the real Islamic extremist.

But evidence showed Khan - who has a degree in English from the University of Greenwich - had been funding the bomb factory with her wages and by taking out loans.

Rehman, wearing a purple jumper, gold shirt and gold tie, and Khan, in a purple jumper and brown scarf, showed no emotion as the verdicts were read out, but Khan glanced up to the public gallery as they were led off to the cells.

Following the verdicts Susan Hemming, head of the Crown Prosecution Service's (CPS) counter-terrorism division, said the intent to carry out a terrorist attack was 'clear' from Rehman's threatening tweets, and that the couple had carried out 'huge amounts of research' online.

She said: 'The pair had been very close to carrying out an attack, all they required was to purchase the chemicals to make a detonator.

'There is little doubt that, had Rehman and Ahmed Khan not been stopped when they were, they would have attempted to carry out an act of terrorism in London.'

Following the hearing, a woman, thought to be Khan's sister, left the Old Bailey in tears, her head covered by a newspaper.

Rehman and Khan were caught following a joint investigation by West Midlands Police and Thames Valley Police.

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Rehman, 25, planned to blow up either Westfield shopping centre (pictured) or the London Underground to coincide with the 10th anniversary of the 7/7 bombings

Assistant Chief Constable Laura Nicholson, head of the South East Counter Terrorism Unit and Regional Organised Crime Unit, said the pair were 'dangerous individuals' who represented a 'genuine threat'.

She said: 'It is clear that Rehman and Khan shared a radical and violent extremist ideology. They actively accessed extremist material on the internet and used social media to develop and share their views as they prepared acts of terrorism.

'The removal of access to terrorist and violent extremist material on the internet is a critical element in preventing radicalisation and terrorist atrocities and we will continue to work with partners to remove such material whenever it is discovered.'

Assistant Chief Constable Marcus Beale, counter terrorism lead for the West Midlands, said: 'Whilst we remain concerned about people travelling to Syria and the risk they pose should they return to the UK, we also consider the threat posed by UK-based individuals and groups who have never travelled or intended to do so.

'There's no doubt Mohammed Rehman and Sana Khan were two such people and that the internet played a significant part in their radicalisation.'

A sentencing hearing will begin on Wednesday when the judge, Mr Justice Baker, will hear mitigation from the defendants' legal teams.

The middle-class JP's daughter who turned her back on her family for a life of debt, drugs and jihad with her terrorist husband

She grew up on a leafy, suburban street in Reading and had dreams of becoming a teacher after graduating from university with an English degree.

But Sana Khan instead became embroiled in a life of drugs and jihad, abandoning her middle class upbringing to seek solace in radical Islam along with her secret terrorist husband.

The 24-year-old, described as mild-mannered and polite, then plotted a 'catastrophic' suicide bombing in London along with her husband Mohammed Rehman, whom she had met as a teenager and later went on to marry without her family's knowledge.

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A collage made up of photos of Rehamn and Khan, who have been found guilty of planning a massive terror attack on London to coincide with the 10th anniversary of 7/7

She funded the planned terror campaign, taking out payday loans to purchase deadly chemicals, before 'repeatedly' watching the martyrdom video of 7/7 bomber Shehzad Tanweer.

The pair - who were said to have had a 'common interest' in violent and extreme Islamic ideology but turned on one another in court - have now been found guilty of preparing for a terrorist attack.

Khan was brought up with her family in Reading, where her mother was a senior manager in Reading Borough Council's Youth and Community Service. She later went on to join the Reading-based company Solutions4Health where she was responsible for a department of 75 employees.

She also sat as a Justice of the Peace and a school governor at the Church of England school attended by her children.

The family owned two Mercedes cars and a third 'runabout', a Toyota Yaris that Khan was allowed to use.

As Rahman and Khan turned on each other in court, Sana Khan's barrister's Paul Lewis QC, accused her husband of trying to blackmail her, threatening to divorce her in order to get spending money for drugs.

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The chemical-stained clothing worn by Rehman, which was found in a bin bag by police in a raid on his home

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This picture shows a page from a notebook recovered by police on which Rehman has written a detailed list for producing an IED

The court heard how she took out £800 in four pay day loans from Quick Quid and paid him a total of more than £12,000 over the course of 17 months.

The money amounted to almost all of her combined salary of just more than £1,000 a month from Aldryngton and Early primary school, where she was an after school activity co-ordinator, and Solutions 4Health, the stop smoking firm where her she was a data entry clerk.

Most of it went on drugs – the bomb-making chemicals and equipment bought on eBay and cannabis farming websites, cost just £643.75.

One family friend described Khan as a 'gentle mild-mannered young woman who relates well with adults and particularly with children.'

Another said her parents kept a 'close guard over their children' and emphasised their 'responsibilities as citizens.'

Mr Lewis said Khan was 'a thoroughly decent young woman from a thoroughly decent family,' who had graduated in English literature with a 2:1 degree and began working in the same company as her mother, while helping children at an after school club.

'You may think, what on earth Sana Khan saw in the man now sitting next to her in the dock,' Mr Lewis said. 'You may find it difficult to fathom but she loved him, showered money on him and fed his drug habit again and again.'

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Chemicals were being prepared for a massive bomb, which was just days away from completion, the court heard. Pictured, some of the chemicals that were seized from Rehman's Reading home

Her mother disapproved of the relationship and Miss Khan promised to break it off. Mr Lewis said: 'If ever a parent had an instinct that was proved right, it was Mrs Khan.'

Khan's older sister, Saima Ahmed Khan, 28, first become aware of Rehman when Sana was 14 and still at school and they would see Rehman walking past the house on his way to see another girlfriend.

She said she was aware that Rehman had an 'interest in' her sister but not what kind of contact they had.

Saima said Rehman was the 'only point of tension' within an otherwise close family and said her sister was a 'beautiful, beautiful girl.'

Khan's mother, Saleen Ahmed Khan, 56, told the court that her husband had caught the couple sitting in the family car two years ago and banned them from seeing each other.

She said she was unaware until police told her that they had then got married in a secret religious ceremony in October 2013.

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Detectives found equipment at Rehman's home which was used in preparation for the foiled attack

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This 'Jihadi John-style' hunting knife was also uncovered during the police raid on Rehman's home

'I can understand why Sana would have kept that private because we were very, very much against this young man.

'I explained to her, we don't know who this individual is or his background. Asian marriages are often about two families coming together and that's how marriages are often very, very successful.

'I was very concerned that what I had heard from the community about Mr Rehman was very, very negative, therefor I didn't see him as the right choice for my daughter.

'She had ambition, she could make her own choices, she had led a comfortable life as a moderate Muslim.

'He had no education, possibly school but that's it, he didn't have any ambitions and I also found out from the community that he was married and I was concerned whether she knew he was married – and he took drugs.'

Mrs Khan went on: 'I don't know what hold this person has on my daughter, how he's manipulated her, how that took place, because if Sana wanted to marry him and she had said to us 'Mum, Dad: I want to marry him' we would have said, 'Yes you can marry him, but we will cut off all contact'.

Khan's father, Javed Ahmed Khan, 54, a chauffeur, said he became suspicious after finding a mobile phone bill with lengthy calls to an unidentified number.

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A broken device that was recovered by police from Rehman's home in Reading

He described how he had followed his daughter, who was driving her mother's car, as she drove to a Tesco car park to meet Rehman in 2014.

'I wanted to check on her,' he told the court. 'He was in the car with my daughter and I told him to leave and I said I don't want to see you with my daughter next time.

'He said he won't, this is the last time he'll see her. I told her not to see him again because he's not the right person. This guy, I didn't want my daughter to have anything to do with him.'

Rehman had been quite embarrassed and the confrontation ended when he cycled off on a child's bicycle.

Mr Khan said he had followed her because he wanted to see 'with my own eyes' but added: 'She said she won't see him again. When it's your child, you don't want her to see a man who's not good for her. I said I don't want you to see him again and she said OK, she wouldn't.'

HOW REHMAN'S PLOT UNFOLDED IN THE TWITTERSPHERE

On his first Twitter account, SilentBomber@InService2God, Rehman posted a picture of an explosion, adding: 'Not bad for an amateur LOL [laughs out loud]. A martyr's nutrition!'

He then re-Tweeted a message: 'What if a Husband and Wife perform Martyrdom Op?? Just wondering…'

The following day, May 12, Rehman wrote: 'I've rigged my house to blow at the touch of a button by my bedside if the popo [police]try to raid man. NOBODY gets in the way of my Jihad!'

He added four photographs of an explosion form a video, adding: 'May we all leave dunya [this world] in style. Allahu Akbar [god is great].'

At 11.46pm that evening, alongside another four images of an explosion in a wooded area, Rehman added: 'Test detonation of my keys to paradise :) 35 pounds of HME,' a reference to a homemade explosives.

Rehman even boasted: 'I'm on a watch list already, what can the Met do? LMAO [laugh my arse off]. If only you knew how happy I am, you'd become depressed. All it takes is the push of one button to send your a**e through your brain.'

He went on: 'I beg you to come and kill me so that I may have my virgins :) I don't need an army, all I need is my explosive vest and a beautiful crowded area full of t***s like you LOL.

'Are you trying me? Why don't you head to the London Underground on the 7th July if you got the balls.'

Rehman then Tweeted: 'Westfield shopping centre or London underground? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.'

The same evening, Rehman posted a link to a video on Youtube of the suicide video made by Shehzad Tanweer, one of the July 7 bombers, adding: 'My beloved predecessor. May Allah accept him among the best of shahada [martyrs].'

Over a new account on May 21, an undercover officer asked Rehman if he was emigrating to the 'Islamic State,' known as hijra, but he responded: 'Hijra no, jihad yes. Insha'Allah I'm preparing for an istishaadi operation[martyrdom] operation.'

This time he used an image of French ISIS executioner called Michael dos Santos and added on his profile page: 'Learn how to make powerful explosives from the comfort of one's own bedroom LoneWolves, Join the ranks of defiant IslamicState.'

The undercover officer referred to Rehman's 'handywork'– pictures he had posted of bomb-making on the previous Twitter account.

Rehman told him: 'Lol insha'Allah, when I've made the required amounts, I'll be wearing them on my chest.'

The officer asked for tips on how to make a bomb and on May 25, Rehman asked him: 'Have you felt that overwhelming feeling of empowerment yet? Allah is truly so kind to His mujahideen.'

When he was arrested police found two large knives under his bed and believe they were designed to tackle officers.

In the end he was arrested in the street near his home, where he struggled to try and escape and had to be subdued.

Khan attended Greenwich University, where she gained a 2:1 degree in English but she moved back home and commuted for an hour and a half each day to lectures because she was fed up with all the male attention she attracted.

'She was extremely unhappy,' her mother said. 'She attracted a lot of attention from other students and men in particular and that is something she didn't like.'

Her mother said they were a 'multi-religious family' explaining that her mother-in-law was a Christian and her mother's side of the family were converts to Islam from Hinduism.

'We are Muslim, but moderate,' she said. 'We have a multi-religious background and we have brought up our children to respect all religions.'

She described her daughter as a 'genuinely bubbly, likable person' adding: 'Out of all my daughters, she is the most popular with neighbours or at school.'

But her daughter had suffered from a loss of confidence after putting on weight, she added: 'Her confidence is more volatile.

'As with a lot of young women, they gain weight or in terms of looks, people put them down. It happens with young people all the time. She had a little bit of self-confidence issues but that doesn't mean she wasn't engaged or bubbly or going out with friends.'

At home, she would use her iPad in a pink case to order clothes from the ASOS website and make-up while the family watched TV.

Mrs Khan said her daughter was 'artistic' and was open and honest with her parents, but, referring to Rehman, added: 'The only stumbling block was this person.'

Mrs Khan could not even bring herself to name the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), saying: 'The organisation I don't want to name, it's absolutely disgusting, they're inhumane, abusing our religion. I just can't even express, it makes me so angry.'

But the court heard that Khan had also underlined passages in a copy of the Koran that read: 'Slay them wherever you find them and drive them out from the places they drove you out…such is the reward of the unbelievers.'

Another marked passage read: 'Warfare if ordained for you though it is hateful for you. It may happen that you hate a thing that is good for you and that you love a thing that is bad for you.'

She had also allegedly been watching extremist videos, reading the ISIS publication Dabiq, receiving emails about how to join ISIS, and had invited Rehman to the family home when her parents were away in Florida.

A cousin who was looked on as her 'big brother,' was brought in by the family from London to talk to Sana.

However he does not seem to have helped, giving evidence that he did not recognise most mainstream Muslims and sharing a video about the End of Days with her.

Sana Khan never spoke to police and she did not give evidence in court.

In a written statement to police she said denied knowing anything about Rehman manufacturing explosives and tried to say she had only been doing 'research on the internet' about ISIS.

She said she knew nothing of his Twitter account or the name 'Silent Bomber' beyond a mention he had made of a character in a Playstation game he used to play when he was younger.

Khan said she had known Rehman since 2007 when she was 15 and he a year older.

'Mohammed Rehman has had an addiction to illegal drugs for an incredibly long time, almost since I've known him,' she said. 'This addiction has considerably worsened over the years, especially since he turned 20 years.

'Initially his addiction exclusively consisted of cannabis and since about last year, has progressed to include cocaine. At first I was dead set against his cannabis addiction but I decided to accept it when I also started to use cannabis too.

She said she had given him money for drugs, adding: 'I have supported Mohammed's drug addiction for a considerable period of time…I'm not for one moment suggesting that all the monies which I sent to Mohammed were for drugs but most of them were. The remaining monies would be to support him generally as he was unemployed and not in receipt of any income.'

In court, her barrister, Paul Lewis QC, said Khan believed that she was helping Rehman buy ingredients for manufacturing the street drug crystal meth.

'They were drug users and he has a recipe for making drugs,' Mr Lewis said. 'Yes they were up to something illegal. She thought it was to do with drugs.'

BOMB PLOTTER'S PLEADING LETTER TO MOTHER-IN-LAW: HE WAS WILLING TO DIE BECAUSE HE COULD NOT BE PARTED FROM 'BELOVED' SECRET BRIDE

Mohammed Rehman conjured up a tragic love story akin to Romeo and Juliet in a desperate bid for forgiveness for dragging his secret wife into the plot.

The 25-year-old, who had a failed arranged marriage before wedding Sana Ahmed Khan in an Islamic ceremony, was not deemed to be a worthy suitor by her well-to-do family, the court heard.

While in jail awaiting trial, he wrote to apologise to her mother Saleeen Ahmed Khan and told her he had been prepared to 'throw my life away' because he could not bear the thought of a future without his beloved wife 'Sohni'.

Mrs Khan refused to answer the letter and instead handed it in to her daughter's legal team who produced it as evidence in the trial.

Here is the full text of the letter he wrote from Belmarsh Prison:

'Dear Mrs Saleen Ahmed-Khan,

I'm writing to you with the greatest of humility and deepest sincerity, humbly requesting an audience, that I may express my grievance for the pain that I have caused you and your family.

In order for you to understand this situation, I'd like to take you back to 2006, where I met the best thing that ever happened to me - a precious diamond of a woman - your beautiful daughter Sohni.

The minute I laid eyes on her, there was nothing more than I could desire from life, than to be with her forever. I did everything that I possibly could, even from without my capabilities, to facilitate a way for us to be together. But just when life couldn't seem to get any better, it was only the beginning of a series of obstacles between her and I, that grew greater with time - like the 'snowball effect' - resulting in this avalanche you see before you today.

I won't go in too much detail as this is not about me and I'm also quite certain that you're not prepared to listen. But what I would like to point out is the fact that you, her parents, had already made your minds up about me, not allowing a chance for us to meet, that perhaps you could made a genuine decision regarding my suitability for Sohni.

You had your reasons to despise me without knowing me, but I dared not challenge them. Thus I was prepared to throw my life away, a future without Sohni was not one that I had planned.

Now as you can see, she has also been dragged into this with me. But regardless of what you have seen or heard in the news, she's completely innocent of the crimes she has been charged with, rather she was undermined by her association with me.

Had I wished to take your daughter away from you, I would have ran away with her, but I'm not one to take a family apart. I wish there were a way for me to compensate you for the sufferings that I have caused, but since there isn't, I figured writing to you is the least I could do, as I can only imagine what you're going through right now.

I'm truly and deeply sorry for everything, and I'm also really sorry if this letter only adds to your pain. But if it makes you feel any better, I have never been in as much pain as I am in today. They could give me a life sentence and I couldn't care less, but they've taken the most beloved and precious thing from me and locked her away like an animal.

I could go on and on, but I feel I may have said enough already. Please support Sohni as though you were certain of her innocence for from where you stand, I'm rendered helpless. I hope you can find a way to forgive me.

Kindest regards,

Mohammed Rehman.

The 'pathetic' drug addict whose own family turned on him and who then tried to blame his 'diamond' wife for his terror bomb plot

In Rehman's own barrister described him as 'one of life's losers' and an 'ungrateful, disrespectful, pathetic, son, brother and husband.'

Rehman attempted to shift the blame to his wife but was too much of a coward to give evidence.

It was only through his barrister, Zafar Ali QC, that Rehman claimed that Khan was a 'clever and committed extremist' who had tried to manipulate him into carrying out a terrorist attack.

On May 12, Rehman wrote: 'I've rigged my house to blow at the touch of a button by my bedside if the popo [police]try to raid man. NOBODY gets in the way of my Jihad!'

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He also posted images of the explosion which he carried out in his garden ahead of the foiled plot

Mr Ali said his client was a 'tragic figure' and a 'pathetic drug user, isolated from the world at large who was desperate to please her.'

'He spent the day trawling the internet and playing combat-inspired video games. The only thing he had in his life was his drugs and Sana Khan,' Mr Ali added.

Khan, he claimed, was leading a 'double life' and was actually looking at buying a 'head to toe' burka in order to move to Syria where she would be 'considered as the revered wife of a martyr.'

In police interviews, Rehman claimed he wanted to commit the 'perfect crime' in order to go to prison and 'get a roof over my head.'

'I was trying to think of the perfect crime where I don't cause any harm to anyone else yet I could probably end up in prison potentially for ever,' he told police following his arrest in May this year.

He explained: 'I just have nothing better to do, I mean, no work, no job, can't find any jobs or anything, I just wanted a bit of excitement in my life.'

Rehman said he was watching ISIS videos on Youtube and Twitter and added that it 'seemed like an exciting life you know and that's all I could really see.'

'I've got nothing to do in my own life. I've got nothing better to do, I just thought it was pretty cool, what's going on,' Rehman said.

'I don't know, I guess, you could just call it freedom, it seemed quite free to me, like driving tanks and having all these big guns and everything. I don't know it just seemed quite free, like a lot of freedom, that's what excited me really.

THE STASH OF CHEMICALS USUALLY FOUND IN A LABORATORY

Rehman's stash of chemicals included hydrogen peroxide, aluminium powder, ammonia solution, hydrochloric acid, 'laboratory grade' acetone, and a bag of hexamine.

A number of items usually found in a chemistry laboratory included a Liebig condenser used to purify chemicals, a glass beaker and a glass funnel.

Among 17 pages of handwritten bomb-making instructions, were instructions for a pressure cooker bomb labelled 'Ingredients for a Mujahideen Super!'

In neat writing using the correct chemical symbols, Rehman had written out recipes for RDX plastic explosives, ETN a secondary high explosive, and HMTD, the same explosive used by the 7/7 bombers.

Underneath the RDX recipe were the words: 'Mix in until uniform in colour and forms a porridge-like substance. Add a blasting cap and voila!'

Traces of RDX high explosives were found on the outside of a glass, 3 litre mixing bowl and on a funnel and glass rod and nearly 12kg of urea nitrate in three separate plastic containers.

Experts at the Forensic Explosives Laboratory [FEL] at Fort Halstead in Kent, believe that Rehman had also made HMTD in order to set off the RDX.

An empty plastic container had a hole in the top to insert a detonator and a diagram was found showing how to make such a device using a mobile phone, a 9v battery and a fairy light.

Searches revealed a number of dismantled mobile phones with holes drilled in them and single fairy lights with wires attached.

All that was required was a day or two of mixing and Rehman was ready to build the bomb.

'The idea of having all this, you know, weaponry and being able to make all these explosives and causing a big stir around the world, this is the only thing that really excited me, to be honest with you, because of that I was inspired, but not inspired to the point where I actually wanted to go out and do something for their cause.'

Rehman was asked what he found attractive about ISIS and told police: 'It's just the controversy of it all' and added: 'I disagreed with the fact that they're just killing a lot of people…but it's the fact that they can actually get out there, make a name for themselves and just do what they're doing and just keep at it and they don't seem to be being beaten, that I've found quite cool.

'Like how it [is] people like this, only a few people, can't seem to be defeated and that's really the only thing that I found quite interesting.'

He said he was smoking cannabis tree or four times a day and had a 'very bad' cocaine habit which meant he was always getting into debt and his wife had to help him out.

'I love her to bits, she's really sweet and she's good to me. I'm good to her but obviously with the way I'm going now, with my drug habits and always taking money off her to pay off my debts and stuff, you know, it's not going too well.

He said he was 'actually quite happy' with his arrest and added: 'I'd like to just have a normal life and just, you know it there's an opportunity here for me, but nothing really seems to be going my way and it's obviously mainly because of the drugs and the fact I couldn't get myself off it and that's really what just pushed me to you know get myself into prison because that's the one way I'm gonna get off the drugs. I am addicted but I don't like my addiction, I hate it.'

In an unusual move, Rehman's family appeared in court to give evidence against him. His older brother, Shaukat was asked if he considered his brother un-Islamic and a 'pathetic person, a corrupt person, a low life who took drugs drank alcohol and messed around with girls.'

'Yes,' he replied.

Rehman's father, Zia Rehman, 53, a bus driver, who also appeared a prosecution witness, said his son was 'just in his own world' and 'starting to become out of control.'

'He got upset about something, I don't know what was bothering him,' his father said, breaking down in tears.

Rehman, who was already a heavy cannabis user, walked out on an arranged marriage in Pakistan when his wife was four months pregnant and returned to Britain.

The child died six weeks after she was born, without Rehman ever seeing her or bothering to return for the funeral.

He had worked at Tesco until he was fired for stealing a chocolate bar and then went to work as a delivery driver for Dominos Pizzas but after returning from Pakistan he never worked again and was constantly borrowing money from his parents to pay his drug debts.

His life spiralled out of control and his sister told the court that she filled two black bin bags with empty beer cans and emptied a waste bin of vomit from his bedroom after their father threw him out of the house.

Yasmin said: 'He stopped loving my dad. They had a couple of arguments and he got aggressive towards my dad. He would swear at him badly, something really disgusting. To be honest, I didn't like him, I hated him because we really tried and no one could reach him.'

When his father wrote a list of things he could do to try and get his life back on track, Rehman burned the note in the middle of the living room floor and his father became too frightened of him to be in the house with him alone.

Rehman, dressed in a maroon v-neck jumper and gold-coloured tie, listened to his family's evidence, occasionally closing his eyes, until his mother, Kha Nasiab Rehman, 50, appeared and he broke down in tears as the court heard how he had stolen £400 from her bank account.

THE DECLARATIONS OF LOVE WHICH MASKED AN ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIP AND THE DESIRE FOR MARTYRDOM

Messages between Mohammed Rehman and Sana Khan were signed off with declarations of love and multiple kisses.

Rehman called Khan his 'cheeky bonbon' and his 'sexy ass girl' and she called him 'MooMoo'.

But the messages would occasionally spiral into abuse as Rehman pleaded for money for drugs and called Khan a 'whore' and a 'bitch.'

On one occasion in May 2014, when she refused him money for cocaine, Khan wrote: 'Sweety I feel like killing myself.'

'Don't sweety, i'll kill myself. That way u wont have to deal with all of this and trust me, right now, it wud be easy for me,' Rehman replied.

Rehman wallowed. 'U get on sweety im just a low life piece of s*** scumbag, hell bound ugly bastard tht cnt find a better excuse to remain evil.'

Khan told him she was 'gna do sum f***d up things' and 'develop a YOLO [you only live once] attitude' adding: 'Wana join me?'

Rehman told her he was about to inject heroin, adding: 'I don't know why i try with u when this is the state in which u leave me in. God really is the ONLY ONE thats ever there for me, i cant believe i chose something as low as u over Him and now my life is ruined. Thanks for absolutely nothing.'

The pair soon made up and on November 17, began buying bomb-making equipment after Khan took out a pay day loan of £700 from Quick Quid and transferred nearly half of it to Rehman which he then used to buy items on eBay while he was on the phone to her.

Over the course of three days from November 15 to 17, during which the purchases were made, Rehman and Khan exchanged 56 calls or messages for a total of 4hrs and 21 minutes.

By December 27, Rehman had got the explosives to work, messaging Khan: 'Awwwwww YAYYY!!! FINALLY!! darling im SO GLAD it worked my angelll now I can messag u again!..I LOVE U my sweetheart mwah mwah xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Khan replied encouragingly: 'My darlinggg u r sooooooo damn SWEET!!!

When he complained that the chemicals were twice as much as he was expecting on February 27, Khan comforted him: 'My sweet lovey don't give up, ask Allah for help, it will all be fine.'

On March 3, she wrote: 'Stay strong my beautiful and remember how fast these months go by and how soon we will b on our way I LOVEEEEEEE YOUUUUUUU SOOOOOOOO MUCHHH.'

On March 20, Rehman messaged that he had been 'workin on another batch of that stuff' and Khan replied: 'Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww my darling. Do u even knw hw mch I have been missing u! My sweet lovey i am SO PROUD of u u have been soooo good and getting it all ready my gorjuss.'

The following day, March 21 at 9.09am, Khan searched for a blog called Steps2Paradise.blogspot.com about the actions necessary to get to paradise according to the Koran.

Two days later at 9.34pm she used her Samsung mobile phone to find a Youtube video of July 7 bomber, Shehzad Tanweer's suicide video, and then again on the evening of March 24 and twice more on the evening of March 25.

On May 17, Rehman also looked for films called 'How to use a Teleprompter' and '$35 DIY teleprompter for LCD or iPad.'

At 2.50pm on May 19, Rehman searched on Twitter for 'lone wolves' and then on Google for: 'sinner; repent to Allah; hell Quran' then looked up the biography of ISIS spokesman Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, who had encouraged attacks on the West.

On May 23, Rehman looked at a series of articles on how suicide bombers work, dying for god, birth of the warrior martyr, suicide bomber history, inside the mind of a suicide bomber.

The pair were arrested five days later.

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“I am Muslim, do you trust me enough for a hug?” guy jailed for threatening to bomb MP’s house

January 1, 2016, 3:39 am

≫ Next: Stop appeasing the Islamic extremists demands Cameron

≪ Previous: Married couple with ‘common interest’ in violent jihad are GUILTY of plotting 7/7-style suicide attack on Westfield shopping centre

It isn’t mentioned in this article, but when he wasn’t threatening to smash the windows and bomb the home of the “dirty pig f*****g whore” MP, he was out holding a sign that read, “I am Muslim, I am labelled a terrorist, I trust you, do you trust me enough for a hug?” Muhammad Mujahid Islam clearly has a keenly developed sense of irony.

“Muslim convert who threatened to bomb Tory MP’s home after Syria airstrikes vote jailed,” by John Chapman, Express, December 30, 2015

Craig Wallace, also known as Muhammad Mujahid Islam, threatened to find Ms Leslie’s home and “show her what it’s like to murder innocents, you dirty pig f*****g whore.”
The 23-year-old from Willesden Green in north London, who converted to Islam while inside serving more than four years for attempted robbery, posted the threatening messages to the MP for Bristol North West just three weeks after being released.
He wrote on a existing thread on The UK Truth Movement Facebook page: “I’m going to smash her windows and drop a bomb on her house when she is tucked up in bed, you dirty f*****g pig shagging s***.
“By the way love you’re f*****g hideous.”
In a second message he went on: “I’m going into find her and show her what it’s like to murder innocents, you dirty pig f*****g whore.”
The court heard the posts were seen by the MPs father and he reported them to the police.
At an earlier hearing Wallace pleaded guilty to sending malicious communications and today he was jailed for eight weeks at Willesden Magistrates Court.
Sentencing him today, Judge Mark Jabbit said: “You pleaded guilty on the first occasion.
“You personalised a very very very serious debate by using vile, and I would say misogynistic language towards a sitting MP in a public forum, which no doubt caused distress.”…
The court previously heard he had mental health issues and was taking “anti-psychotic medication for a personality disorder.”
Wallace is said to have posted the messages after he had been out protesting against the Syrian air strike vote for “two or three days and had very little sleep and had not taken his medication”….
Wallace, of Teignmouth Road was jailed for eight weeks but has served half his sentence already and will be released soon.

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Stop appeasing the Islamic extremists demands Cameron

January 2, 2016, 10:06 am

≫ Next: Migrants cheating the system by pretending to be victims of domestic abuse so they can stay in Britain permanently

≪ Previous: “I am Muslim, do you trust me enough for a hug?” guy jailed for threatening to bomb MP’s house

Prime Minister yesterday issued an uncompromising New Year message
Pledged to end the appeasement of Islamist extremism throughout Britain
Said those here must subscribe to British values of freedom and tolerance
Insisted 2016 will be a 'test of our mettle' in the battle against radicals

David Cameron yesterday pledged to end the appeasement of Islamist extremism, and demanded that everyone in Britain show 'loyalty' to this country and its values.

In a stark warning, he said 2016 will be a 'test of our mettle' in the battle against radicals with a 'seething hatred' of this country and the West.

Issuing an uncompromising New Year message, the Prime Minister said anyone who walks the streets of Britain must subscribe to its values, including freedom and tolerance.

The UK and its people should 'revel' in their way of life, he said, as he promised to 'come down hard' on radicals.

Mr Cameron's words reflect his determination to confront what he calls the 'poisonous ideology' that has turned young Muslims against their country.

There is huge concern in government, the police and the security services about the radicalisation of young Britons online by Islamic State militants.

At least 700 Britons are thought to have travelled to fight for IS in Syria and Iraq, and around half have returned home.

His comments come ahead of the publication this year of a major review into how to promote integration in communities cut off from the rest of society.

The review, by civil servant Louise Casey, is expected to deliver some 'hard truths' to the Muslim community and lead to new policies.

In a video posted on the Downing Street website, Mr Cameron said extremism was a major social problem which he would 'take on'.

He has previously warned of the dangers posed by people in Britain who 'quietly condone' the extremist ideology of IS, without explicitly supporting violence.

Yesterday he reinforced his message that it was not only the gunmen and bombers who needed to be tackled.

'When our national security is threatened by a seething hatred of the West, one that turns people against their country and can even turn them into murderous extremists, I want us to be very clear: you will not defeat us,' said Mr Cameron.

'And we will not just confront the violence and the terror. We will take on their underlying, poisonous narrative of grievance and resentment.

'We will come down hard on those who create the conditions for that narrative to flourish. And we will have greater confidence in – indeed, we will revel in – our way of life.

Because if you walk our streets, learn in our schools, benefit from our society, you sign up to our values: freedom; tolerance; responsibility; loyalty.'

The choice on extremism was whether to 'appease the extremists or take apart their ideology, piece by piece', he said.

Mr Cameron identified tackling extremism as one of the 'big challenges of our age', along with poverty, social mobility and housing. He said the country was in the middle of a 'turnaround decade' in which he wanted to transform society, having built a strong economy.

His words on extremism will cause dismay among many Muslims, who feel they are being unfairly singled out.

In a speech on extremism in July, Mr Cameron warned that young Muslims may be turning to terrorism because they grow up in insular communities and have no 'allegiance' to this country. He said some young people are vulnerable to swallowing 'poisonous' propaganda.

Last year Khalid Mahmood, the Labour MP for Birmingham Perry Barr, claimed that as many as 2,000 Britons are fighting alongside Islamist militants in Syria and Iraq – at least three times the official estimate.

Immigration is voters' top concern with 60% making the issue a priority (even though Cameron won't mention it in New Year message)

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Migrants cheating the system by pretending to be victims of domestic abuse so they can stay in Britain permanently

January 2, 2016, 10:42 am

≫ Next: Controversial planning application for new Blackburn mosque withdrawn

≪ Previous: Stop appeasing the Islamic extremists demands Cameron

Some migrants deceiving Home Office staff with abuse claims, report finds
Number of men and women applying to stay in UK via domestic violence route has soared from 59 in 2002 to 1,224 in 2014-15
Some 75 per cent of applications made were successful, figures revealed

Migrants are pretending to be victims of domestic violence to dupe officials into letting them stay permanently in Britain.

A report found that some migrants are deceiving Home Office staff by fraudulently claiming they have been battered to get the right to live in the UK.

In 15 of 25 sampled cases the decision to grant a person indefinite leave to remain here after they claimed to suffer domestic violence was ‘not justified’, said Chief Inspector of Immigration David Bolt.

In 15 of 25 sampled cases the decision to grant a person indefinite leave to remain here after they claimed to suffer domestic violence was ‘not justified’, said Chief Inspector of Immigration David Bolt (pictured)

Normally a migrant who is the spouse of a Briton or someone who is settled in the UK must live here for five years and show the relationship is ongoing before they can apply for settlement themselves.

But if a relationship has broken down permanently because of domestic violence, the victim can be fast-tracked.

A decision is typically taken within 20 days instead of the usual six months and tests of a person’s knowledge of language and life in the UK, which are required for other settlement routes, are waived.

The number of men and women applying to stay in the UK via the domestic violence route has soared from 59 in 2002 to 1,224 in 2014-15. Some 75 per cent of applications were successful.

In his investigation into the teams handing out indefinite leave to remain, Mr Bolt said: ‘There is potential for abuse because settlement can be obtained quickly.’

Caseworkers gave excessive weight to ‘unverified evidence’, including letters from domestic violence charities which relayed the applicant’s own account of abuse rather than any independent assessment.

Keith Vaz said the way in which the domestic violence concession was being dealt with by the Home Office was 'a cause for great concern'

In 16 of the sample of 25 cases that were approved, officials did not check with the police whether an alleged incident had been reported or a criminal investigation had been carried out.

Mr Bolt found that applications were decided using just paperwork rather than interviews. He said: ‘We judged that an interview would enable the caseworker to test credibility and consistency and reach a better-evidenced decision.’

Keith Vaz, chairman of the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee, said: ‘The way in which the domestic violence concession is being dealt with by the Home Office is a cause for great concern.’

Last night the Home Office said it was reviewing its procedures to ‘make it clearer how we assess evidence’.

A Home Office spokesman said: ‘All applications are considered on their individual merits, including any compelling and compassionate circumstances, and in line with the immigration rules.

- Germany will have taken 1.1million refugees this year – five times its 2014 total. The figure, published in a newspaper, compares to last year’s total of just over 200,000. Britain opted to take 20,000 refugees direct from camps in Syria.

Immigration is voters' top concern with 60% making the issue a priority (even though Cameron won't mention it in New Year message)

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Controversial planning application for new Blackburn mosque withdrawn

January 2, 2016, 10:45 am

≫ Next: vicious hammer and screwdriver gang which attacked teen

≪ Previous: Migrants cheating the system by pretending to be victims of domestic abuse so they can stay in Britain permanently

NO MOSQUE: Vandalism at the school

THE controversial planning application for a new Blackburn mosque, which sparked the dumping of two pig heads at the Islamic girls’ school proposed for the development, has been withdrawn.

Cllr Andy Kay revealed the proposal has been dropped after it was ruled invalid by council officials.

He hopes that the correct procedures can be followed without any repeat of the weekend incident which is being investigated by the police as a potentially racist or religious hate crime.

The dumping of the pig heads, particularly offensive to Muslims, at the Markazul Uloom Girls School in Park Lee Road in Highercroft horrified religious and political leaders.

Now the school will have to restart the planning procedure and obtain proper designation as a place of worship if it wishes to go ahead with the scheme to add a mosque building with dome and minarets.

Highercroft councillor Mr Kay’s hopes of a reasoned debate on the issue have been echoed by Dean of Blackburn Christopher Armstrong, Lancashire Council of Mosques’ chairman Abdul Hamid Qureshi and the woman behind the 2,000-signature protest petition opposed to the scheme, Sara Herd.

Cllr Kay, deputy leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council, said: “The application by the Markazul Uloom School has been withdrawn by the school’s agent. The applicants were advised to do this because the application was invalid.

“A meeting will be held with the applicants, probably in late January, with the aim of discussing the issues raised at a recent meeting with local councillors and to advise on the planning permissions the school will need to apply for. Any new application will be subject to a wide consultation exercise with the local community.

“Hopefully this will now take the heat out of the situation. I hope the school will follow the proper planning procedures and the objectors will follow the correct democratic process. We do not want any repeat of the weekend’s appalling incident with the pig heads.”

Ms Herd, who has family and friends living in the Highercroft area, said: “This is fantastic news. This is the wrong place for a mosque or any other place of worship.

“I hope we can have a reasonable debate on the issue. We certainly do not want any repeat of the horrific weekend incident.”

Mr Qureshi said: “This is a wise and sensible decision by the school.”

A police spokesman said inquiries are ongoing.Dean Armstrong said: “I now hope all the proper procedures and democratic process are followed.”

A police spokesman said inquiries are ongoing.

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vicious hammer and screwdriver gang which attacked teen

January 3, 2016, 11:19 am

≫ Next: ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT COLLECTING MONEY FOR MOSQUE SEXUALLY ASSAULTED WOMAN

≪ Previous: Controversial planning application for new Blackburn mosque withdrawn

Police have released these CCTV images in a bid to trace a gang in connection with a vicious town centre hammer attack on two teenagers in Sutton Coldfield.

Two 17-year-old boys were targeted in the attack outside the HSBC bank, on High Street, when they were surrounded by a group of teens.

One of the group them asked what phones they had as another pulled out a screwdriver and a third produced a hammer.

After being hit on the head with the hammer one of the lads was repeatedly kicked and hit before being stabbed in the ear leaving a nasty 2cm gash. His friend was stamped on the head in the vicious attack.

Their ordeal only ended after a passer-by chased off the gang.

As part of the investigation Detective Constable Chris Bradley has trawled through hours of CCTV footage from across the town and spoken to witnesses. Forensic scene investigators also visited the site.

The attack happened at around 9.50pm on Saturday May 9.

He said: “This was a very nasty attack and I am keen to hear from anyone who can provide information.”

People with information which may help DC Bradley find the people in the images should call him on 101 or ring Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

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ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT COLLECTING MONEY FOR MOSQUE SEXUALLY ASSAULTED WOMAN

January 4, 2016, 12:15 pm

≫ Next: Map reveals the areas where 50% of residents are born abroad as capital’s population hits record 8.6million

≪ Previous: vicious hammer and screwdriver gang which attacked teen

Amazing a Muslim sex attacker caught by the Muslim community and handed over to police after details were put on Facebook and somebody recognized him……wouldn’t be anything to do with the victim also being a Muslim also would it. They arent so quick at reporting Muslim grooming gang members who target white schoolgirls preferring to look the other way

A MAN who sexually assaulted a woman while he was out collecting money for a Mosque was jailed for 10 months today (Thursday).

Mohammed Nazir Khan, 63, was caught after members of the Luton Moslem community heard about the attack and cornered him when they saw a man matching his description.

Judge Michael Kay QC told him: “It is to the great credit of the local community that not only did they spot you, but they ensured you were arrested.”

Khan, who was of no fixed address, pleaded guilty on the day his trial was due to start at Luton crown court to sexually assaulting the woman on 4 July this year.

He is an overstayer in the UK and is due to be deported back to Bangladesh when he has served his sentence.

The court heard that he was knocked on doors in Luton collecting money during Ramadan for a foreign mosque.

He went into the hallway of the middle aged woman victim and told her she had a lot of nice things. He grabbed her hands and began to kiss her on the left ear. He then kissed her up her right arm and on her chest, said prosecutor Iestyn Morgan.

She told him to stop and tried to get him out of the house. He tried to go upstairs, but she blocked his path and he kissed her chest again. The woman told him to get out and he kissed her again on the ear and chest. When got to the front door he turned to her and said: “One more. One more.”

He was arrested on July 11 after the details of his actions had been put on Facebook.

When questioned he said he only kissed the victim as a gesture ofthanks.His barrister Julie Flanagan said: “He apologises for the upset and discomfort he has caused.The judge said Khan should also register as a Sex Offender for 10 years.

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Map reveals the areas where 50% of residents are born abroad as capital’s population hits record 8.6million

January 4, 2016, 12:30 pm

≫ Next: 'It's definitely him'

≪ Previous: ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT COLLECTING MONEY FOR MOSQUE SEXUALLY ASSAULTED WOMAN

London has reached the highest population in its history - 8.6million - and it is also at its most diverse

One in three residents originally born abroad and in some areas half have a different country of birth to Britain

People originally from India make up the highest numbers, followed by those from Nigeria, Poland and Bangladesh

Capital's immigrant population will hit five million in 2031, when it will overtake British-born residents for first time

The 8.6million population of London is its peak since the previous record, in 1939, before the devastation of the Second World War but more than 2.2million Londoners left for a new life in the surrounding counties or the suburbs over the next 50 years.

Picture of London: This map shows the largest foreign born populations in London by borough, with people from India being the dominant nationality in ten areas

Breakdown: This shows the largest foreign-born populations in each borough and the percentage of the population born abroad

a surge pushed the population to 8.6million this year

Then and now: London's previous population peak of 8million came in 1939, on the eve of war with Germany (left in Lincoln's Inn), until this year (right) after a surge pushed the population to 8.6million

Statistics show London's inner boroughs have a far higher immigrant population than its outer boroughs and there is also a clear trend of people of certain nationalities moving to boroughs already heavily-populated by their fellow countrymen.

TOP TEN COUNTRIES BY BIRTH IN LONDON OTHER THAN THE UK
	Population in London
India	267,000
Poland	135,000
Pakistan	113,000
Bangladesh	126,000
Ireland	112,000
Nigeria	99,000
Sri Lanka	86,000
Jamaica	75,000
United States	71,000
Kenya	63,000
Total population in London today	Est. 8,600,000

Brent and Haringey have the highest proportion of foreign-born residents at 53.3 per cent, followed by Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster, on 51.8 per cent and 50.9 per cent respectively, according to the Mayor of London's Data Store.

Between 1939 and 1991, London lost one quarter of its population 2.2 million people as residents started a new life outside the capital.

Today around 267,000 of Londoners were born in India, 135,000 from Poland, 113,000 from Pakistan, 126,000 from Bangladesh and 112,000 from Ireland.

Of the total three million non-British residents 40 per cent were from Europe, 30 per cent from the Middle East and Asia, 20 per cent from Africa and 10 per cent from America or the Caribbean.

Explaining the growth in population Professor Michael Batty, from University College London, told the BBC: 'It went down from about 8m to 6.6m over a period of about 30 years and the main reason was suburbanisation - suburban growth, people getting cars, changing transport and also slum clearance'.

He said the huge growth over the last decade 'relates to international migration'.

Experts believe that the number of foreign-born people living in London will outnumber native Britons by 2031, based on predictions from the 2011 census.

The immigrant population of the capital will reach at least five million by 2031 - having more than doubled from one million in 1971 to three million in 2011, when the last census was carried out.

The rise of non-British born Londoners will take the city's total population to more than 10 million in 2031 and 11 million in 2041.

But while the city's immigrant population will continue to rise sharply in the coming decades, the number of British-born people will continue to slowly decline.

In 1971 this figure was at more than six million but this is likely to sink below five million in the coming decades.

Growth: 200 years ago London had one million residents, which peaked in 1939, but then London lost one quarter of its population 2.2 million people as residents started a new post-war life outside the capital

Analysis of the last census also revealed that more than 600,000 white British Londoners left the capital in a decade. Between 2001 and 2011 the level reached 620,000.

It is the equivalent of a city the size of Glasgow – made up entirely of white Britons – moving out of the capital. It also means that white Britons are now in a minority in the country’s largest city.

White Britons now make up 45 per cent of the population, compared with 58 per cent in 2001.

FROM 1939 TO 2015: HOW LONDON HAS CHANGED SINCE ITS LAST POPULATION PEAK AT THE OUTBREAK OF WAR

Expansion: This map shows the newly-built areas of London in 1939 in blue, mainly in London's suburbs, with the newly-built areas of London between 1992 and today in red, where expansion happened mainly in the suburbs

The last time London's population peaked was in 1939, on the eve of the Second World War. But how different was the UK's capital city back then?

Currently, 13 per cent of people living in the UK are London inhabitants, whereas the London population accounted for 18 per cent of the UK in 1939.

At that time, London was overwhelmingly white - only 2.7 per cent had been born abroad. Today, around 37 per cent of Londoners were born abroad.

In 1939, with no NHS and heavy smog, life expectancy was 62. Today, Londoners can expect to live to 82.

The population pyramid shows London now has fewer teenagers and more pensioners than in 1939. There are also have more adult men, due to a 'missing generation' in 1939, after the First World War.

In 1939, statutory education only went up to age 14, so most of London's secondary schools had yet to be built.

Before the war, only 2 per cent of people went to university and almost all of them were men. In London today, 43 per cent of people go onto university and the majority of them are women.

Although the number of people working in London has not changed greatly, the industries which cater for those jobs have.

In 1939, around one in three people worked in manufacturing. Now 90 per cent of these manufacturing jobs have gone and most people now work in industries that barely existed in 1939.

These include 250,000 jobs in IT, with another 250,000 working in hotels and restaurants.

St Paul's was the tallest building in the capital In 1939. Now St Paul's is only the 41st tallest building in the London. The tallest building is The Shard.

House prices have also grown extraordinarily. In 1939, the average cost of a home was the equivalent of three years' salary; now it is around 16 years.

Source: Barney Stringer

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'It's definitely him'

January 4, 2016, 12:43 pm

≫ Next: New muslim mega mosque has speakers that can be heard up to 15 miles away…

≪ Previous: Map reveals the areas where 50% of residents are born abroad as capital’s population hits record 8.6million

Child in video has been confirmed as young son of Grace 'Khadijah' Dare
In 2014, Dare posted a shocking photograph to her Twitter account of her then four-year-old son Isa, meaning 'Jesus', holding an AK-47 rifle
See full news coverage on ISIS at www.dailymail.co.uk/isis

The child soldier who has threatened the UK with new atrocities in a chilling ISIS execution video is the son of a notorious jihadi bride from London, according to her own father.

The young boy, dressed in military fatigues and a black bandanna bearing the white mark of ISIS, declares that 'We will kill kuffar [non believers]' in depraved new footage which sees five shackled men in orange jumpsuits brutally murdered by a masked executioner.

The six-year-old boy's own grandfather has now confirmed he is the son of Grace 'Khadijah' Dare, who grew up in Lewisham, south London, to Nigerian Christian parents and converted to Islam as a teenager.

Her father Henry Dare, also known as Sunday, has said that his grandson is 'definitely' the boy in the ISIS video.

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The child soldier who has threatened the UK with new atrocities in a chilling ISIS execution video is believed to be the son of notorious Jihadi bride Grace 'Khadijah' Dare

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In 2014, Dare posted a shocking photograph to her Twitter account of her then four-year-old son Isa, meaning 'Jesus', holding an AK-47 rifle. He bears a remarkable similarity to the child in the latest propaganda video

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Another picture of a youngster posing with a toy gun in front of an ISIS flag in 2014 and thought to be Dare's son, also bears a similarity to the child. It was tweeted by Londoner Umm Khattab, the teenaged widow of an ISIS fighter with the caption: 'Next generation, Bi'ithnillah (God willing)'

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Her father Henry Dare told Channel 4 News that his grandson is 'definitely' the boy in the sick ISIS video. Mr Dare, who is also known as Sunday, has begged his daughter to return to Britain

Mr Dare, a minicab driver, told the Telegraph: 'I was surprised when I saw the picture. It's definitely him. Of course I'm worried but there's nothing I can do now.

'I'm not angry - I would never have expected it. I just hope someone is trying to bring them back.'

In an interview with Channel 4 news, Mr Dare, who is also known as Sunday, begged his daughter to return to Britain. He said: 'She should come back and face the music. Because, she has let herself down,'

When asked about his grandson Isa, Mr Dare said: 'He doesn't know anything. He's a small boy.They are just using him as a shield.' Mr Dare revealed that he had not spoken to his daughter for 'weeks'.

'When she calls me I keep on ignoring her calls because she has brought shame to my family and to herself,' Mr Dare told Channel 4 News.

In 2014, Khadijah Dare, one of her many post-conversion pseudonyms, posted a shocking photograph to her Twitter account of her then four-year-old son Isa, meaning 'Jesus', smiling as he aims an AK-47 rifle.

She is married to a Swedish Islamic fighter called Abu Bakr, and is a convert who previously attended a mosque in South London.

Isa also has at least one younger sibling, a boy who would now be between two and three years old, who his mother has referred to as a 'mini mujahid', or holy warrior.

A strikingly similar appearance between Isa and the young boy in the video sparked speculation earlier today. Many pointed to a distinctive facial mole and said both had the same shaped eyes.

A suspected British boy (pictured) has threatened the UK with new terror attacks in a depraved ISIS execution video

Images of Isa look remarkably similar to those of the young boy featured in the video. Dare's father Henry Dare has now confirmed that his grandson is the boy in the ISIS video

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Dare is married to a Swedish Islamic fighter called Abu Bakr, and is reported to be a convert who previously attended a mosque in South London. The couple are pictured with their child in a Channel 4 report in 2013

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In the same footage she urges other Muslims to 'stop being so selfish...focusing on your families or studies' and implores them to join her in Syria and join the holy war

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The footage shows Dare and another veiled woman going about daily life in Syria. She told reporters she can use a Kalashnikov and would like to fight, but has had to settle for the life of a jihadi's wife

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Two years ago, Dare swapped her 'comfortable life' in Britain, where she was known for her dimples and her love of her mother's home cooking, for the horror of Syria, where she has joined the terror group ISIS

BABES IN ARMS: THE YOUNG BRITISH MOTHER VOWING TO BE THE FIRST WOMAN TO KILL WESTERNERS AND HER AK-47 WIELDING TODDLER SON

Two years ago, Grace 'Khadijah' Dare swapped her 'comfortable life' in Britain, where she was known for her dimples and her love of her mother's home cooking, for the horror of Syria, where she joined the terror group ISIS.

Friends have previously described Dare, from Lewisham, South London, as a bit of a tomboy who enjoyed wearing tight jeans and platforms. She also had braces and dimples and 'was very cute'.

Dare liked to watch football on TV as a child, and loved Chinese food and her mother's home cooking.

When she was older she went to a local college to study media studies, film studies, psychology and sociology, and was a popular young girl.

But it was at the age of 18, that she converted to Islam and began worshipping at the Lewisham Islamic Centre – which has links to both the Woolwich killers of Lee Rigby and radical cleric Abu Hamza.

She admitted in a Channel 4 report in 2013 that when she began wearing the full face veil in Lewisham people on the street told her to 'go back to her country', to which she replied: 'I was born round the corner'.

In the same footage she urges other Muslims to 'stop being so selfish...focusing on your families or studies' and implores them to join her in Syria and join the holy war.

Hours after the beheading of American journalist James Foley at the hands of a British jihadist, Dare gloated on social media at his execution and vowed that she would be the first British woman to kill a US soldier.

Dare was gleeful that the 'UK must be shaking up' after the execution and from her home in the Syrian scrub she tweeted: 'Any links 4 da execution of da journalist plz. Allahu Akbar. UK must b shaking up haha. I wna b da 1st UK woman 2 kill a UK or US terorrist!'

Dare is believed to have been radicalised online before she started attending the Lewisham Islamic Centre, where Drummer Lee Rigby's murderers are said to have worshipped, although the mosque denies they were part of the congregation.

Prime Minister David Cameron has described the video as 'desperate stuff' from a group that is 'losing territory' and 'increasingly losing anybody's sympathy'.

Young children have appeared in many IS propaganda videos, including material which shows groups of children being trained with guns.

In one infamous image, a child was pictured holding a severed head, while another photograph that circulated online showed a young child being encouraged to kick a severed head.

More than 30 UK children had been made the subject of family court orders over radicalisation fears, Scotland Yard said in August. At that time, judges had considered cases involving 12 different families.

After appearing in an ISIS recruitment video calling on British Muslims to 'stop being selfish' and give up their families and studies to join the front line in the Middle East, Dare - a pseudonym - is said to be top of MI6's list.

In the latest sick video, the five captives were forced to confess to their crimes - most probably under duress - before they were paraded to a remote desert location and ordered to kneel.

A jihadi speaking with an English accent yelled 'Allahu Akbar' before he and four other fanatics shot the men from point blank range.

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In the 10 minute long propaganda video, one executioner (pictured) described the Prime Minister as an 'imbecile', adding: 'Your children will pay for your deeds'

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The terror group's captives (pictured), dressed in orange jumpsuits, were filmed 'confessing' in Arabic to spying for British security service

Speculation mounted today that the gunman could be Siddhartha Dhar, a British jihadi who fled to join the terror group in Syria while on police bail for encouraging terrorism in 2014.

His sister, Konika Dhar, admitted the voice sounded 'a bit like' her brother, but did not believe it was him. She added she would 'kill him myself' if his identity was confirmed.

The video ended with a trailer for another execution in which Isa warned Britain of coming atrocities.

It raised fears that he may have been made to execute someone on camera.

UNMASKING THE NEW 'JIHADI JOHN': EXPERTS STUDY VOICE AND HANDS

Intelligence analysts are expected to employ the same techniques used to successfully unmask and track down Emwazi, including voice analysis and possibly even vein-recognition technology that mapped the executioner's hands.

They will also be hunting for clues to confirm the identity of the young English-speaking boy who also appears in the video.

The killer in the latest video is most likely be of southeast Asian origin, born in the UK, and from southern England, according to a leading forensic analyst.

The voice analyst told The Times that he was likely to have been badly educated due to his stilted style and that fact that his words were spoken as though he were reading from a script.

Before killing the prisoners in cold blood, the British jihadi said: 'This is a message to David Cameron, slave of the White House, mule of the Jews.'

He called the Prime Minister an 'imbecile' and warned 'your children will pay' for British airstrikes on ISIS targets in Syria.

He added: 'How strange it is that we find ourselves today hearing an insignificant leader like you challenge the might of the Islamic State.

'How strange it is that the leader of a small island threatens us with a handful of planes.

'One would have thought you would have learned the lessons of your pathetic master in Washington and his failed campaign against Islamic State.

'It seems that you, just like your predecessors [Tony] Blair and [Gordon] Brown, are just as arrogant and foolish.

'David, only a fool would wage war against a land where the law of Allah reigns supreme and where the people live under the justice and security of the Sharia.

'As for those of you who wish to continue fighting under the banner of Cameron on the minimum wage, we say to you, to ask yourself, do you really think your government will care about you when you come into our hands?

'Or will they abandon you, as they have abandoned these spies, and those who came before them.'

The latest video has been hailed by military experts as a desperate move by ISIS to divert attention away from military failures in Iraq, since the terror group lost control of its stronghold of Ramadi.

Reacting to the video, Labour MP Sadiq Khan wrote on Twitter: 'The evil and disgusting ISIS propaganda video shows why we need to do much more to tackle radicalisation in Britain.'

A Foreign Office spokesman said: 'We are aware of the video and are examining its content.'

THE BRITISH FAMILIES SETTING UP HOME IN THE HEART OF A WAR ZONE

There have been a series of high-profile cases involving families taking their children to Syria, or making unsuccessful attempts to make the journey, in the past year.

In October, police released images of a family of seven from Bradford thought to have begun a journey to Syria or Iraq.

Imran Ameen, 39, his wife, Farzana Ameen, 40, and their five children - Isma Imran 15; Moeen Imran, 14; Mohammed Muneeb Imran, 11; Ismail Imran, eight; and Mohammed Imran, five - were last seen on October 5 after buying one-way tickets. Mr Ameen's brother Rehan Noor-Ul-Ameen, 30, was thought to have travelled to Turkey months earlier.

Arshid Siddique, first cousin of both Imran and Farzana Ameen, denounced the family's decision and said it 'beggared belief' that any parent would want to take their children to a war zone.

In July, a family of 12 from Luton was reported missing after failing to return from a holiday in Bangladesh. The grandparents of the group, which included 75-year-old Muhammed Abdul Mannan, were being held against their will, their son Shalim Hussain claimed.

Mr Mannan and his wife Minera Khatun, 53, went missing with their daughter Rajia Khanom, 21, and sons Mohammed Zayd Hussain, 25, Mohammed Toufique Hussain, 19, Mohammed Abil Kashem Saker, 31, and Mohammed Saleh Hussain, 26.

Three unnamed children aged between one and 11 were with the group, as were Mohammed Abil Kashem Saker's wife Sheida Khanam, 27, and Mohammed Saleh Hussain's wife Roshanara Begum, 24.

Just a month earlier British sisters Khadija Dawood, 30, Sugra Dawood, 34, and Zohra Dawood, 33, and their nine children, aged between three and 15, were feared to have travelled to link up with IS militants.

The sisters split into two groups to cross into Syria from Turkey, according to an IS smuggler.

Police also thwarted the attempts of many who were alleged to have been trying to get to the war-torn region.

In September, 33-year-old Zahera Tariq was arrested at Luton Airport on suspicion of child abduction. Her children, aged between four and 12, were taken into police protection.

Another British-born mother of two tried to take her children to the capital of so-called Islamic State territory to live under sharia law, a court heard in December. The 34-year-old lied to her husband, telling him she was taking the children to a birthday party before making her way to Heathrow, allegedly bound for Raqqa in Syria.

Four British jihadis were the subject of international sanctions in November, which banned travel and froze their assets globally.

In October, it was disclosed the number of terrorism suspects being arrested in the UK had reached record levels, with women increasingly under suspicion and at risk of radicalisation.

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New muslim mega mosque has speakers that can be heard up to 15 miles away…

January 5, 2016, 1:35 pm

≫ Next: Pastor McConnell found not guilty in ‘satanic Islam’ case

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A new Muslim Mega Mosque to be built in the centre of Birmingham will have a speaker system that can be heard 15 miles away, and will broadcast the call to prayer across the city 5 times a day.

The mega mosque has been granted special permission by Labour led Birmingham City Council to have the giant speaker system installed due to a special provision of the Local Communities Act 2008 which allows religious groups to break noise abatement laws.

Birmingham mosque to have speakers that can be heard up to 15 miles away

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The speakers will be louder than a jet engine and will be heard up to 15 miles away in Solihull and the Black Country. The speaker system will primarily be used to announce the call to prayer in Arabic 5 times a day, starting at 5 o’clock in the morning, angering some local residents that they will be woken up even though they aren’t Muslim.

Terry Gardner, a painter and decorator from the outskirts of Birmingham had this to say: ‘Its nonsense that I’m going to get told to pray five times a day, even though I’m not a muslim, can’t they just give everyone a text message, it would be a lot quieter’

Can’t the muslim call to prayer be a text message? It would be a lot quieter

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Up to 5,000 people will be able to attend the mosque at any one time, bringing traffic in the area to a halt at the beginning and end of each service. Worries that this will finally cement the area of inner city Birmingham as a no go area for non muslims are raising tensions in the city, and it is unknown whether being able to hear the new speaker system 15 miles away will affect the services of other religions.

With vicar Simon Montpellier, of St Annes in the Gable’s Church complaining: ‘The local mosque broadcast’s its call to prayer over the top of my morning service, and it just winds me up, christians have been practising in this country for 1,200 years, and we shouldn’t be drowned out now because someone worked out how to connect a microphone to an amplifier’

What is sure is that some people are going to be woken up, to be asked to go to a mosque 15 miles away, for a religion they are not a part of. Birmingham Council may have a lot to answer for in the near future.

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Pastor McConnell found not guilty in ‘satanic Islam’ case

January 5, 2016, 1:37 pm

≫ Next: Ginger extremist 'set up a stall on London’s Oxford Street to drum-up support for ISIS and told Muslim women who challenged him to die'

≪ Previous: New muslim mega mosque has speakers that can be heard up to 15 miles away…

Judge: “It is not the task of the criminal law to censor offensive utterances.”

Pastor James McConnell arrives at Langanside courts in Belfast to hear the judgement on the case which was taken against him regarding comments he made in one of his sermons. Picture by Jonathan Porter/PressEye

Evangelical Christian preacher Pastor James McConnell has been found not guilty of making "grossly offensive" remarks about Islam.

The 78-year-old had been accused of two offences linked to an address delivered at Whitewell Metropolitan Tabernacle in May 2014.

The evangelical preacher walked free from court today after he was found not guilty on both counts by a judge in Belfast.

There was applause at Belfast Magistrates Court as the verdict was delivered.

Pastor McConnell smiled before walking over to shake hands with his defence lawyers.

District judge Liam McNally said: “The courts need to be very careful not to criticise speech which, however contemptible, is no more than offensive.

“It is not the task of the criminal law to censor offensive utterances.

“Accordingly I find Pastor McConnell not guilty of both charges.”

Pastor McConnell, from Shore Road in Newtownabbey, had faced two charges linked to the sermon delivered from the pulpit of his North Belfast church on May 18 2014.

He was charged under the Communications Act 2003.

Pastor McConnell was accused of improper use of a public electronic communications network, and causing a grossly offensive message to be sent by means of a public electronic communications network.

In the internet-broadcast sermon the preacher described Islam as “heathen” and “satanic” and “a doctrine spawned in hell”.

He also said he did not trust Muslims.

Pastor McConnell later apologised following a public outcry.

He was questioned by police at the time, however, last June it emerged he would be prosecuted.

The three-day trial took place last month.

A prosecution lawyer had argued Pastor McConnell’s comments were not “a slip of the tongue”.

He said the pastor was “not on trial for his beliefs”, but for what he said and using words that were allegedly grossly offensive.

However, a defence lawyer said the case essentially revolved around five words in an hour-long religious service.

He said the pastor was a man with an unblemished record who should be recognised for his good work in society, not convicted in court.

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Ginger extremist 'set up a stall on London’s Oxford Street to drum-up support for ISIS and told Muslim women who challenged him to die'

January 5, 2016, 1:42 pm

≫ Next: waterpark bans bikinis and orders visitors to wear 'Islamically appropriate' clothes

≪ Previous: Pastor McConnell found not guilty in ‘satanic Islam’ case

ibrahim Anderson allegedly gave out leaflets while at busy shopping area
Told Muslims to 'pledge allegiance' and 'migrate and resettle', court heard
Instructions for travel to Syria also allegedly found on 38-year-old's phone
Arrested with Shah Jahan Kahn and both men deny charges against them

Ginger-bearded extremist Ibrahim Anderson allegedly set up a stall on London's Oxford Street in a bid to drum up support for ISIS

A ginger-bearded extremist allegedly set up a stall on London's Oxford Street in a bid to drum up support for ISIS.

Ibrahim Anderson invited passers-by to back the terror group and handed out leaflets bearing its logo, a court heard.

The 38-year-old was joined by Shah Jahan Kahn, 63, as they attempted to engage with shoppers on the busy street for around two-and-a-half hours on August 9, 2014, it was said.

The men, who were part of a larger group, also allegedly told two Shia women to 'go die' after the sisters challenged the group about what their actions.

Mark Seymour, prosecuting at the Old Bailey, said the men were 'well aware' of what they were doing.

He added: 'During the course of the afternoon the group in Oxford Street, who were acting together, invited support for ISIS through engaging with members of the public who were passing.

'ISIS is a proscribed organisation and inviting support for a proscribed organisation is prohibited by law.'

Anderson has denied possessing information likely to be useful to a terrorist. He and Khan, who both live in Luton, Bedfordshire, also denied inviting support for a proscribed organisation.

Mr Seymour added that ISIS, also known as ISIL, was made a proscribed organisation on June 19, 2014.

CCTV captured Anderson and Khan among a group of six people arriving to set up the stall, with Anderson carrying the trestle table which formed its centrepiece at 2.39pm, the court heard.

Leaflets they were allegedly handing out referred to seven ‘great responsibilities’ of Muslims.

These 'responsibilities' included pledging an oath of allegiance to the Caliph, obeying the Caliph according to Shariah law and migrating and resettle in the caliphate.

It also spoke about educating people about the caliphate and ‘exposing any lies and fabrications made against the Islamic state’.

The leaflet continued: ‘After many attempts and many great sacrifices... the Muslims with the help of Allah have announced the re-establishment of the Khilafah (caliphate) and appointed an Imam as Khaleef (Muslim leader).’

The 38-year-old was joined by Shah Jahan Kahn, 63, as they attempted to engage with shoppers on the busy street with a leaflet for around two-and-a-half hours on August 9, 2014, it was said

Mr Seymour this referred to ISIS and its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

The court was told the police were also sent pictures of the stall by two sisters, who had been targeted by the men after they challenged them about what they were doing.

Asmaa and Reem Al-Jufaisha were returning from a nearby pro-Gaza march when they saw the stall around 3pm.

[The ginger man] said we should all support ISIS and help them

Mark Seymour, prosecuting

Anderson overheard them criticising ISIS and asked what was wrong with the group, it was claimed.

Mr Seymour said: ‘Asmaa said to him that ISIS were killing innocent people, Christians and Muslims, both Sunni and Shia.

‘The ginger man said that Shia Muslims were Khuffar, [or] aren’t real Muslims. When Asmaa said she was an Iraqi Shia Muslim he told her they were all Khuffar and should go back to Iraq and die.

‘When Reem told the man he was worse than Al Qaeda, the ginger man said: "What’s wrong with Al Qaeda and supporting something for the cause of your religion?" He said we should all support ISIS and help them.’

Anderson also told the sisters they would ‘burn in hell’ and should be killed, it is claimed, while Khan allegedly told Asmaa she was a disgrace to her religion and commented on Reem’s makeup.

Instructions for travel to Syria were later found by police on a notebook computer at Anderson’s home, it was claimed.

Photographs of Anderson’s young sons posing with a sword in front of a black Islamic flag were also found on his mobile phone, the court heard.

Another picture allegedly showed his toddler daughter wearing a headscarf in front of the same banner bearing the shahada prayer. The banner is similar to Islamist flags used by Al Qaeda or the Taliban, jurors were told.

Other photos on his phone included Anderson standing with his left finger pointing up, a practice adopted by members of ISIS, and a man wearing a hoodie bearing the symbol of the Islamic State and holding a handgun, the court heard.

Another photo apparently showed Anderson posing in a black turban, a Quran and an Islamic State flag. He also had an image of a poster with the writing ‘Keep calm and support ISIS’.

The laptop also contained the official Islamic State video of the beheading of journalist James Foley in 2014.

Anderson, who is married with four children, was arrested at his home on December 16, 2014.

He admitted he was present at the stall but told police he did not support ISIS and did not hand out the leaflet.

Khan was arrested the same day but his phone has never been recovered. He made no comment in interview.

The trial continues.

Yet another convert to Islam thinks his new religion is a call to commit treason, pledge allegiance to an entity that has declared war on his native land, and go to war against unbelievers. Authorities in the United Kingdom as well as everywhere else remain completely incurious about why conversion to the Religion of Peace so often results in exactly this pattern of behavior.

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