‘Behead soldier' plot terror gang go free

THREE convicted terrorists who plotted to kidnap and behead a British Muslim soldier have been freed early from jail.

Hamid Elasmar, 46, Zahoor Iqbal, 32, and Mohammed Irfan, 33, were all caged less than two years ago.

they had been given between three and seven years for helping to plan the Birmingham kidnap of a squaddie, who they plotted to behead "like a pig" in a lock-up garage.

But the trio have now been released early for good behaviour.

During their trials, a court heard how the gang met at Elasmar's Edgbaston council flat to plot the release of video footage of the planned killing.

Plot mastermind Parviz Khan, 39 - now serving 14 years - was recorded by security services saying he intended to parade the soldier's head on a pole.

Khan told Elasmar: "We'll cut it off like you cut a pig, man. Then you put it on a stick. Then we throw the body, burn it, send the video."

Birmingham Central Mosque chairman Dr Mohammed Naseem aims to visit the men next week.
He said: "If they planned something like this they are in the wrong about their Islamic obligations. We would want to re-educate them."

Elasmar plus Iqbal, from Kingstanding, and Irfan, from Ward End, remain on a Bank of England watchlist restricting their bank accounts, freezing their assets and imposing caps on financial transactions.

Benefits fraud investigator faces jail for claiming £31,000 by pretending his wife was a hard-up single parent

Mohammed Aslam, 37, helped Afshan Ishaq make a string of benefit claims as she pretended to be a hard-up single parent with as little as £20 in the bank.

But London's Harrow Crown Court heard that in reality they were living together, and apart from working as a teacher she was enjoying the rent from one of their properties.

Andrew Evans, prosecuting, said Ishaq, also 37, eventually fell under suspicion.

Despite the pair having wed the previous year under Islamic tradition, her trusted Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) partner pretended he and the mother-of-two were strangers.
That allowed him to formally interview her and halt the inquiry.

Aslam, of Baffingham Way, Wembley, north-west London, and Ishaq, who according to court records now lives separately in nearby Barn Way, originally denied any wrongdoing.
But a month into their trial, and while one of them was still in the witness box, further developments resulted in the pair changing some of their pleas.

Ishaq admitted three accounts of deception involving housing and council tax benefits as well as income support.

Aslam pleaded guilty to wilful misconduct in public office, money laundering and three counts of perverting the course of justice.

All the offences were committed between April 18, 2004 and July 2, 2008.
Judge Graham Arran told the couple they could remain on bail until November 2 while pre-sentence reports were prepared.

Mr Evans told the court that Aslam joined the DWP in February 2000 as an administrative assistant.

The following year he met Ishaq - then a colleague - and a relationship developed.
In 2003, and still at the DWP, she allegedly began a life of crime with a £157,000 mortgage obtained by posing as a £49,000-a-year self-employed IT consultant.

Twelve months later, by which time she was a primary school teacher, Aslam helped her submit a dishonest £9,000 income support application.

The barrister said that according to the paperwork she did not have a partner, lived at an address she was really renting out, covering up thousands in the bank, and had no income apart from state handouts.

Mr Evans told jurors the pair then conned Harrow Council out of a fortune by claiming housing and council tax benefit.

This time they pretended to be landlord and tenant and concocted a rent agreement showing Ishaq was supposedly paying Aslam £1,050 a month.

The £22,546 they are said to have dishonestly pocketed as a result boosted their alleged criminal windfall to a total of £31,447.

'In July 2005, Ishaq's income support claim was investigated by Harrow's Fraud Investigation Service, which had received information that she had been working whilst claiming benefits.
'She was therefore requested to attend an interview under caution, which she did on July 28 that year.

'But the benefit fraud investigator who interviewed her on that occasion was Mohammed Aslam.'
By doing so, he committed 'a clear and serious breach' of the investigators' code of conduct and good practice.

Counsel explained he then effectively buried the matter by pretending to issue her with a formal caution, but then failed to log it on the DWP's database.
The barrister added the investigator also tried to reduce his workload by forging signatures on three special forms that halted inquiries by making it appear those under investigation had agreed to pay penalties.

'Dishonest' Blair and Straw accused over secret plan for multicultural UK

Jack Straw and Tony Blair 'dishonestly' concealed a plan to allow in more immigrants and make Britain more multi-cultural because they feared a public backlash if it was made public, it has been claimed.

Read more: http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/news/article-1222769/Dishonest-Blair-Straw-accused-secret-plan-multicultural-UK.html#ixzz0Uybo56QQ

Sharia supremacist group gets $165,000 in taxpayer funding

The same group on whose TV program Obama adviser Dalia Mogahed recently defended Sharia. "Islamists who want to destroy the state get £100,000 funding," by Andrew Gilligan for the Telegraph,

Leading members of a group that wants to bring down the British state and replace it with a dictatorship under Islamic law have secured more than £100,000 of taxpayers' money for a chain of schools.

Accounts filed at the Charity Commission show that the Government paid a total of £113,411 last year to a foundation run by senior members and activists of Hizb ut-Tahrir -- a notorious Islamic extremist group that ministers promised to ban.

The public money helped run a nursery school and two Islamic primary schools where children are taught key elements of Hizb's ideology from the age of five....

Hizb regards integration as "dangerous" and says that British Muslims should "fight assimilation" into British society. It wants to create a global Islamic superstate, or "caliphate", initially in Muslim-majority countries and then across the rest of the world.

It says that "those [Muslims] who believe in democracy are Kafir", or apostates. It orders all Muslims to keep apart from non-believers and boycott "corrupt" British elections and political processes. It has a tiny following and its views are rejected by most British Muslims.

Hizb, which operates worldwide, insists it is non-violent and condemned the London bombings.
However its website previously displayed a leaflet urging Muslims to "kill [Jews] wherever you find them" and at a rally in London earlier this year, Imran Waheed, its chief media adviser in Britain, said that there could be "no peace" with Israel, calling on Muslims to "fight" a "jihad... in the way of Allah" against it.

The group - which Tony Blair promised to ban after the 7/7 attacks on London - were given £113,411 to provide the three educational centres in Tottenham and Slough.

Hizb ut-Tahrir is an international Sunni political party whose goal is to combine all Muslim countries in a unitary Islamic state or caliphate, ruled by Islamic law and with a caliph head of state elected by Muslims.

Its anti-Semitism has resulted in the group being banned in Germany and on some British university campuses....

Ministers are today expected to come under pressure to investigate why the money was provided.

The group is regarded as an 'organisation of concern' by the Home Office.

Tory MP Patrick Mercer, chairman of the parliamentary sub-committee on counter-terrorism, today condemned grants to schools with connections to extremist groups.

Mr Mercer, MP for Newark and Retford, said: 'Hizb ut-Tahrir may not be illegal but it has definitely been identified as part of the conveyor-belt to terrorism.

That Hizb is involved with vulnerable youngsters is deeply disturbing.'

Lib-Dem MP Paul Holmes, a member of the Commons children, schools and families committee, said: 'It seems illogical that the Government would give money to a school associated with this type of group.

'The Government has said Ofsted inspects all schools ... however, I have not been convinced that the government inspections have been robust enough to prevent schools teaching things which society could be concerned about.'

Hizb ut-Tahrir has said British Muslims should 'fight assimilation' into British society.
The three schools are run by the Islamic Shakhsiyah Foundation, a registered charity. At least three of the four trustees are Hizb ut-Tahrir members or activists.

A Department for Children, Schools and Families spokesman said local authorities were responsible for ensuring 'providers were

A political row has broken out over claims public money was given to two schools which, the Tories say, have links to Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir.

No face...no place

A COLLEGE has banned a Muslim woman from becoming a student - because she will not take off a veil hiding her face.

Shawana Bilqes, 18, was turned away after trying to enrol on a course.
Staff asked her to remove her burka - which covers everything but her eyes - for identity fraud purposes.

But she told them she could not because of her religious beliefs, and was forced to abandon plans to sign up for the Access course to Higher Education Diploma.

Yesterday Shawana, from Burnley, Lancs, said: "It is my choice to wear the veil.
"I live around the corner from the college in an area where there are so many practising Muslims.

"I tried to compromise but they wouldn't. The college sent me a letter to say I could continue with my course if I stopped wearing the veil.
Security

"We are in the 21st Century and we get people from all walks of life. I'm in the police cadets as well and yet it's not a problem wearing the veil there."
Burnley College has 7,500 sixth-form students and a 100 per cent pass rate for the fourth year running.

Principal John Smith defended the decision, saying: "The highest standards of learning require unimpeded communication with students.

"This is not possible if the face is not fully visible."

He also insisted all staff and students must wear a tag showing their face for security reasons.
Justice Secretary Jack Straw previously hit out at the rise of the burka in his Blackburn constituency.

And in France, President Nicolas Sarkozy spoke out in June against the garment, claiming it undermined women's dignity.
He said: "The burka is not a sign of religion, it's a sign of subservience."

Muslim group demands full Sharia law

This was inevitable once Sharia provisions began to be introduced, and not surprising coming from Choudary. But look what changes the supporters of Sharia have in mind for Britain. "Now Muslims Demand: Give Us Full Sharia Law," by Martyn Brown for the Daily Express,

A RADICAL Muslim group sparked outrage last night as it launched a massive campaign to impose sharia law on Britain.

The fanatical group Islam4UK has ­announced plans to hold a potentially ­incendiary rally in London later this month.

And it is calling for a complete upheaval of the British legal system, its officials and ­legislation.
Members have urged Muslims from all over Britain to converge on the capital on October 31 for a procession to demand the full implementation of sharia law.

On a website to promote their cause they deride British institutions, showing a mock-up picture of Nelson's Column surmounted by a minaret.

Plans for the demonstration have been ­delivered to the Metropolitan Police and could see up to 5,000 extremists marching to demand the controversial system.

The procession - dubbed March 4 Shari'ah - will start at the House of Commons, which the group's website describes as the "very place where the lives of millions of people in the UK are changed and it is from here where unjust wars are launched".

The group then intends to march to 10 Downing Street and "call for the removal of the tyrant Gordon Brown from power".

The march will then converge on Trafalgar Square where protesters expect it "will gather even more support from tourists and members of the public, making clear in the heart of London the need for Shari'ah in society".

The group declared: "We hereby request all Muslims in the United Kingdom, in Manchester, Leeds, Cardiff, Glasgow and all other places to join us and collectively declare that as submitters to Almighty Allah, we have had enough of democracy and man-made law and the depravity of the British culture.\

"On this day we will call for a complete upheaval of the British ruling system its members and legislature, and demand the full implementation of Shari'ah in Britain."Last night politicians and fellow Muslims condemned the group's incendiary comments, which come in the wake of recent violent incidents in towns and cities like Manchester, Birmingham and Luton, Beds....A spokesman for the Islamic Society of Britain said: "99.999 per cent of Muslims despise these people. This only serves to fuel racial ­tensions."...Uh huh. But what about Sharia in the UK?
What is your position on that?

Plans for the march are revealed on the website Islam4UK, which is fronted by preacher Anjem Choudary who has also called for all British women to wear burkhas.

Explaining the Nelson's Column mock-up he said that under sharia law the construction and elevation of statues or idols is prohibited and consequently the statue of Nelson "would be removed and demolished without hesitation". At the base of the column the friezes would be replaced with Islamic decoration and giant urns would be filled with gold coins for the poor.

Mr Choudary has said that under sharia law in Britain people who commit adultery would be stoned to death, adding that "anyone who becomes intoxicated by alcohol would be given 40 lashes in public"....

Tension was high as angry protests greeted a visit to the UK by a Dutch far-right MP.

Around 40 Muslim demonstrators gathered near the Houses of Parliament as Geert Wilders arrived in central London.

Brandishing banners saying "Shariah is the solution, freedom go to hell" and "Geert Wilders deserves Islamic punishment", the protesters were held back by police.

Mr Wilders' press conference was moved inside the Abbey Gardens building opposite the Houses of Parliament.

Abu Muaz, from Islam For UK, said: "If I were to say some of the things he has said I would be arrested under the Terrorism Act. But because there is a war on Muslims he gets an easy ride."

Addressing journalists alongside UKIP peer Lord Pearson, Mr Wilders said his visit was "a victory".

Explaining his controversial views on Islam, he said: "I have a problem with the Islamic ideology, the Islamic culture, because I feel that the more Islam that we get in our societies the less freedom that we get."




photos

Dutch MP Wilders wins appeal

Geert Wilders, a member of the Party of Freedom party in the Netherlands' House of Representatives, was prevented from entering Britain on February 12th by the Home Office, which claimed he would spread hatred by showing an anti-Islam film.

He had been invited to show the film by Ukip peer Lord Pearson, who told journalists following the ban that Mr Wilders "has a right to say what he is saying". "We are disappointed by the court decision today," a Home Office spokesman said. "The government opposes extremism in all its forms.

The decision to review Geert Wilders' admission was taken on the basis his presence could have inflated tensions between our communities and led to inter-faith violence. We still maintain this view." Fitna, the film which Mr Wilders wanted to show, opens with images of the Qur'an which is followed by footage of terrorist attacks around the world.

Today's appeal win raises the possibility it could now be shown in the UK.

Wilders, leader of the Party for Freedom in the Netherlands, was originally refused entry in February after arriving in London. He had been due to show his 17-minute film Fitna, which criticises the Qu'ran as a "fascist book", at the House of Lords, but was turned away at Heathrow airport.

The decision to refuse Wilders entry to the country, made by Jacqui Smith, then the home secretary, led to criticism of what was seen by some commentators as the silencing of free speech.

The ruling by the asylum and immigration tribunal means that Wilders, who is accused of Islamophobia, could now be allowed into the country.

In initially refusing Wilders access, a letter sent to the politician by the Home Office, on behalf of Jacqui Smith, said his presence "would pose a genuine, present and significantly serious threat to one of the fundamental interests of society.

The secretary of state is satisfied that your statements about Muslims and their beliefs, as expressed in the film and elsewhere, would threaten community harmony and therefore public safety in the UK."

Today a Home Office spokesman said the government was "disappointed" by the ruling. He said: "The government opposes extremism is all its forms. The decision to refuse Wilders admission was taken on the basis that his presence could have inflamed tensions between our communities and have led to inter-faith violence. We still maintain this view."

Qatar donates £1.5m for mosque after intervention from Jack Straw

Mr Straw wrote a letter of introduction for his friend and political ally, Lord Patel of Blackburn, who wanted to persuade the emir, Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa al-Thani, to spend £1.5m, half the total needed to build the five-storey mosque.

The gift came after Mr Straw, then leader of the Commons, accepted free first-class flights and accommodation for himself and his wife for a four-day trip to the emirate in April 2007. He declared the trip in the MPs’ register of interests.

Liberal Democrats in Blackburn, Mr Straw’s constituency, claimed the Labour party had used the donation to the Bicknell Street mosque in order to garner votes from local Muslims.
Concerns over foreign funding have led Italy, France and Spain to introduce checks on the sources of foreign money used to build mosques.

Professor Anthony Glees, an expert on the influence of Islamic groups, said: “I think it’s a matter of grave concern that our institutions should receive unregulated funding from individuals and organisations about which we know practically nothing.”

Haras Rafiq, co-founder of the Sufi Muslim council, said large foreign donors expected mosques to reflect their beliefs, and this was squeezing out moderate Muslims. “This has been a huge problem for the last decade. Some of the biggest mosques and institutions in the UK have been funded by foreign money and have been proven to be portraying extremist viewpoints.

“Money speaks and we need to ensure that the money is not coming from the wrong people.”
The Emir of Qatar has an image as a pro-western reformist and moderniser and his country is the base for a significant US military presence.

However Qatar has also provided aid to Hamas and offered support to the extremist Muslim Brotherhood and to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran and Omar al-Bashir, the president of Sudan who has been indicted for war crimes in Darfur.

The emir, who seized power from his father in a bloodless coup in 1995, is the founder of the controversial al-Jazeera television channel which includes among its presenters Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, who has praised suicide bombings and is banned from the UK.

Like Saudi Arabia, which also funds a number of mosques across Britain, Qatar follows the fundmentalist wahhabi form of Islam.

Mr Straw was moved from his job as foreign secretary in 2006 amid claims that he had upset President Bush with his views on the Middle East.

Lord Patel, a former businessman who is chairman of Blackburn’s central mosque, said Mr Straw gave him “a reference letter” and added: “It was a general letter introducing me. He is a Blackburn MP and he wrote that as a Blackburn MP.”

Mr Straw’s spokesman said: “Jack is entirely comfortable with his role in this. He is proud of his efforts to support all sections of the community in Blackburn. He does not know whether his trip to Qatar, in his role as MP for Blackburn, had any bearing on the donation to the mosque.”

46 years for city centre violence

A GROUP of eight men who started serious violence and disorder in Leeds city centre on New Year’s Day have been sentenced to a combined total of 46-and-a-half-years in prison.

The eight men from Manchester started a large-scale fight during which one man suffered serious head injuries, before moving onto Wade Lane. Once on Wade Lane further disorder occurred before Javan Service, aged 18, of South Grove, Longsight, fired a gun six times towards a group of people.

Sheffield Crown Court, Recorder Alan Goldsack QC sentenced Service to 12 years’ imprisonment for Violent Disorder, Grievous Bodily Harm, Possession of a Firearm with Intent to Cause Fear and Violence, Possession of a Prohibited Weapon.

Seven other men were also sentenced for their part in the disorder. They are: Mohammed Mohibur Uddin, 20, of Stapleford Close, Sale was sentenced to eight years for violent disorder, possession of a prohibited weapon, attempting to pervert the course of justice and grievous bodily harm.

Mohammed Rahel Choudhury, 22, of Handcock Close, Manchester was sentenced to two-and-a-half-years for violent disorder and attempting to pervert the course of justice.

Mohammed Rahim Choudhury, 19, also of Hancock Close, Manchester received four years and eight months for violent disorder and GBH.

Curtis Mattis, 19 of Edbrook Walk, Longsight received four years and eight months for violent disorder and GBH.

Mohammed Ali Muzzafar, 21 of East Grove, Manchester was sentenced to four years and eight months for violent disorder and GBH. Jarrell Wright, 18 of Victory Parade received seven years for violent disorder and GBH.

Luqmaan Mahmood, 19, of Slade Lane, Manchester was sentenced to three years for possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear and violence. Detective Inspector Jaz Khan of City and Holbeck CID said: ‘’This was a complex investigation and today’s result is the culmination of much hard work and dedication by officers from City and Holbeck CID and all the investigation team received a commendation from the judge.

"Throughout the investigation we worked closely with our colleagues at Greater Manchester Police, and I would like to thank them for their assistance. "Facial Mapping and DNA evidence were used during the investigation, but CCTV footage played the most pivotal part. "Much credit is given to the operator who became aware of the volatile situation that was about to develop and had the presence of mind to capture the footage which was vital both to the investigation and the evidence which secured the convictions of these men.

"I am pleased with the sentences handed by the Court, as they reflect the serious nature of this incident.’’ Chief Superintendent Mark Milsom, Divisional Commander for City and Holbeck, said: "The events of New Year’s Day morning stand out from the bigger picture which is that Leeds city centre has far less incidents of gun crime when compared to other major cities in this country.

"Following this incident we have run a number of special operations during the bank holiday weekends in the city, including the August Bank Holiday which is the busiest weekend of the year in Leeds, and we have not seen any repetition of this kind of incident.

"But it is also crucial to stress that our officers will work as hard as possible to arrest, charge and convict anyone who uses a firearm in our city, and this case clearly demonstrates that."

British Taxpayers Pay to Fly Illegals Home (from France)...

A charter flight paid for by British and French taxpayers is set to fly to Afghanistan today carrying around 250 illegal migrants arrested near Calais.

As well as a seat on the plane, at an estimated cost of £500 each, many of those on board will receive £1,900 in cash and a guarantee of retraining in their homeland.
However, there will be nothing to prevent any of them travelling back the moment they get to Kabul.

Migrants gather near the ferry terminal in Calais, France following the demolition of their makeshift homes in 'the Jungle' last month

The flight, which will begin in London, is intended to be the first of many which will end up costing millions of pounds, split equally between France and Britain.

The main aim will be to try to reduce the mounting number of migrants massing in Calais, which they use as a springboard to reach Britain where they will claim asylum or disappear into the black economy.

More...
Taxpayers fund taxi rides home for drunks in police crackdown on violence after pubs close
Calais mayor demands Britain lets in ALL migrants as riot police tear down illegal camps again

The development follows last month's clearing of The Jungle, a notorious Calais squatter camp which was filled with mainly young men from Afghanistan.
French immigration minister Eric Besson was criticised after almost all those arrested were released.

It now appears that a compromise has been reached with many agreeing to accept the huge cash incentive to go home, if only briefly.

The sum involved will be worth hundreds of times more in Afghanistan than it is in Europe.
The French pulled out of a similar voluntary deportation scheme a year ago, with First Lady Carla Bruni among those insisting that it was immoral to send Afghans back to their war-torn country.

But now such arguments appear to have been quietly forgotten with the first plane, believed to be being supplied by a British firm, taking off from London in the early hours before stopping to pick up some 250 migrants in Paris.

They will then be flown to Kabul accompanied by police and security guards, again mainly believed to be British as French unions have refused to take part.

UK Muslims Want Grant Money without Anti-Extremist Strings...

Muslim groups say that they want money from the Government but don’t like the strings attached which ask them to help root out extremism.

The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) says that the grants which require them to stand against violent hard-liners are ‘intrusive’.

However, they say they do want the money which is designed to help local communities.

The MCB’s Deputy Secretary General, Dr Daud Abdullah, told the Guardian: “Experience has shown that very often funds are accompanied with intrusion and attempts to influence decision-making”.

He added Muslim groups were now turning away from Government funding.

Khalida Khan, Director of the An-Nisa Society, would welcome money but said: “There’s a lot of strings attached – the government stance is just terrorism driven”.

The funding comes from an initiative called Preventing Violent Extremism which has been allocated £70 million over three years.

The Government say it is particularly for helping “support local authorities and community groups in improving the capacity of local communities to resist violent extremism”.

A spokeswoman for the Department for Communities and Local Government said the effectiveness of the scheme was dependent on: “everyone involved playing a positive part in standing up to, isolating and challenging those that seek to spread hatred and violence”.

The Government spokeswoman added: “We have acknowledged that the Prevent label can isolate some groups and that is why funding going into communities will no longer be branded in this way”.

Earlier this year the Government suspended ties with the Muslim Council of Britain.

Hazel Blears, then Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, raised concerns that Dr Abdullah had signed a document justifying attacks on the Royal Navy.

She said that until the matter was resolved, “I feel that it is only appropriate for us to suspend our engagement with the Muslim Council of Britain”.

Dhimmi laws applied in UK: Church forbidden to play music because it offends Muslim community

According to Islamic law, dhimmis -- primarily Jews and Christians under the "protection" of the Islamic state -- are "forbidden to openly display wine or pork, (A: to ring church bells or display crosses,) recite the Torah or Evangel aloud, or make public display of their funerals and feastdays" ('Umdat al-Salik, o11.5(6)).No bells, no public displays. And in the modern age, no loud joyful music. And now these dhimmi laws come to the UK. Dunni Odetoyinbo said in court that a council officer asked her "to keep the noise down so as not to offend the Muslim community." The council denies this now, but given that Muslim neighbors were complaining, there is nothing implausible about Odetoyinbo's claim."Worshippers quit church after council noise ban 'takes away their ability to praise God," from the Daily Mail,

They praised the Lord by singing their hearts out and chanting prayers at packed services.
But members of a congregation in north London have abandoned their church - because of a council noise ban.

The Immanuel International Christian Centre was ordered to keep its amplified music and sermons quieter after a neighbour complained.

But the church's pastor Dunni Odetoyinbo claimed Waltham Forest council had only told them to keep quiet so as not to offend the Muslim community....

In court Mrs Odetoyinbo, 55, claimed a council officer had asked her 'to keep the noise down so as not to offend the Muslim community'.

But magistrates rejected the appeal, and ordered the church to pay £2,250 costs.
It can now only play music for 20 minutes on a Sunday between 11.30am and 11.50pm....

U.K. to release dozens of high-risk jihadists -- in order to avoid "inflaming" extremism

Up to 30 "high-risk" terrorists -- including some of the most dangerous men in Britain --are due to be released from jail in the next year.

More are being freed in the wake of a ruling by Britain's most senior judges that long sentences for terrorist crimes could "inflame" rather than deter extremism.

An analysis of appeal court cases shows that of the 26 terrorism cases it has heard, 25 have led to men with terrorism convictions having their sentences reduced. Others are being released because they serve only part of their term.

The leniency of the British appeal court to some convicted terrorists contrasts with America where they can be locked up for their whole lives.One man designated "high risk" and due to be freed soon is Andrew Rowe, a Muslim convert who was found guilty of having notes on how to fire mortar bombs.

Rowe was sentenced to 15 years in 2005. He is due to be freed next April after his sentence was reduced to 10 years. Others who have had their terms cut include some of those who helped the failed suicide bombers of July 21, 2005 and two of those convicted of soliciting murder during the Danish cartoons protest.

The sentences were reduced after a key ruling in July 2008 by Lord Phillips, then the lord chief justice, and two other senior judges, who reduced Abdul Rahman's sentence from six to five years following his guilty plea for disseminating a terrorist publication. Rahman, a key al-Qaida player, recruited disaffected Muslims from England to fight British troops in Afghanistan.

At the heart of this decision lie two absurd assumptions: First, there is the idea that fighting terrorism -- indeed, seeing that justice is served -- causes terrorism, and so not fighting quite so hard will make the enemy dial it back a notch, too. The second is the notion that there are "hearts and minds" that can be won over: Release people who hate Britain and were willing to act on that hatred in hope of making them and their friends hate the Sceptred Isle less.

Councillor Stops Meeting to Pray...

A Muslim Labour councillor faced a backlash when a Town Hall meeting was adjourning while she went to pray. The development committee at Tower Hamlets stopped after five minutes to allow Muslim councillors a prayer break during its last meeting.Cllr Rania Khan faced shouts of "disgusting" from the public gallery as she left to pray and on her return said she had been disturbed by the "abuse hurled at her".

A former Labour councillor, Ronald Osborne, sitting in the gallery, said: "We weren't hurling abuse at her. But you don't stop a meeting to pray, that should be done beforehand.

Are they paying her to pray?

People rushed home from work to get to this meeting and it's not fair to keep them waiting."Cllr Khan later explained that as many other Muslim she tries to pray at set times five times a day. She said: "I'm a politician but my religion is also important to me.

I had been in meetings from 2-7pm and I'm entitled to a 15 minute break in any job. "I had already missed earlier prayers and the important thing was to try and pray before the sun sets

muslim Bomb hoaxer closed airport to prevent UK authorities deporting him to Pakistan

A failed asylum seeker shut down an airport and put three others on red alert with a series of hoax calls warning of suicide bomb attacks.

Salman Mukaty, 27, was trying to stop himself being deported to Pakistan after more than nine years in the UK.

He told police that 16 passengers carrying 'suicide bomb materials' were about to board planes in airports across the country.

His false warnings forced Leeds-Bradford airport to close for one hour and put Heathrow, Birmingham and Manchester on red alert.

Alan Blake, prosecuting said it was 'hard to conceive a more dramatic, more horrific threat' than the series of calls made on March 27.

Mukaty believed he would avoid deportation as it would 'not be safe for him to return to Pakistan once he had helped the UK authorities', he added.

Mukaty, of Slough, Berkshire, claimed he had been tipped off about the bombs by an extremist friend. But, said Mr Blake, his account was 'riddled with lies and inconsistencies'.
'The calls were made specifically to service his own interests. He is a dangerous and selfish man,' he told Reading Crown Court.

'What better way for Mr Mukaty to show that it would be unjust for him to be returned to Pakistan than to show how useful he was to the authorities?'

Mukaty, born in Karachi, had been appealing against his asylum refusal and met immigration officials on the day of the hoax calls.
He claimed to have genuinely believed the information given to him by someone he called Arif Khan, who he said had links with Islamic extremists in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

More...
Lockerbie bomber Al Megrahi renews campaign to clear his name

Five freed terrorists sent back to prison after breaching parole

Mukaty said he had known Khan since he was four but his friend has never been tracked down. Mr Blake dismissed Khan as a myth.

Harold Persaud, defending, said that Mukaty genuinely feared that 'innocent people would die' after he was tipped off.

'The person who is given that information would very rarely be in a position to judge whether that information is credible,' he told the court.

'He still believes what he did was right giving what he knew.'

It took the jury less than two hours to convict Mukaty of four counts of communicating false information with intent at the airports.

He will be sentenced on November 6. The offence carries a maximum term of seven years.
The early-morning bomb scare caused misery for hundreds of passengers at Leeds-Bradford airport. There was traffic chaos as roads were closed and fire engines raced to the scene.

Once the airport reopened, it took another two hours for services to return to normal. Around 2.87million passengers use Leeds-Bradford every year.

A spokesman for the UK Border Agency said an independent immigration judge was due to rule on Mukaty's asylum appeal.

Detective Chief Superintendant George Turner, head of the South East Counter Terrorism Unit, said: 'This case sends a clear message that this sort of offence will be thoroughly investigated and dealt with robustly.'