Sunday, June 14, 2015

Teenage fanatic from Yorkshire becomes Britain's youngest ever suicide bomber in Iraq

  • Talha Asmal, from Dewsbury, took part in attack which killed 11 in Iraq
  • He was part of four-man team who blew themselves up near oil works
  • Photos posted online yesterday show the men preparing for the attack
  • Asmal's family say they 'abhor all acts of violence wherever perpetrated'
A 17-year-old from West Yorkshire has become Britain's youngest ever suicide bomber while fighting for ISIS is Iraq.

Talha Asmal, from Dewsbury, was part of a four-strong team of ISIS suicide bombers who killed at least 11 people in two separate explosions near the city of Baiji.

His family today condemned the violence and claimed the teenager was radicalised by those 'too cowardly to do their own dirty work'.

Photos posted online show 17-year-old Talha Asmal, from Dewsbury, before he took part in a suicide attack
Photos posted online show 17-year-old Talha Asmal, from Dewsbury, before he took part in a suicide attack
Asmal, using the name Abu Yusef al-Britani, was pictured smiling next to the car in which he blew himself up
Asmal, using the name Abu Yusef al-Britani, was pictured smiling next to the car in which he blew himself up

It comes after images emerged of Asmal, fighting under the name Abu Yusef al-Britani, alongside three other fanatics driving jeeps packed with explosives towards an oil refinery.

The teenager fled his home in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, in March to join Isis along with his friend Hassan Munshi, who was also 17.

In a statement release today, his family said: 'Talha comes from a close knit, hardworking, peace-loving and law-abiding British Muslim family. The entire family unreservedly condemns and abhors all acts of violence wherever perpetrated.'

They added: 'As a family we would like to take this opportunity to unequivocally state that ISIS are not Islam.

'They do not represent in any way, shape or form Islam and Muslims and we are no longer prepared to allow a barbaric group like ISIS to hijack our faith. ISIS Not and Never in our name.'

They said Asmal was a 'caring and affable teenager' who had been exploited by jihadis through the internet 'in a process of deliberate and calculated grooming'.

They urged other families who suspected relatives had become or were being radicalised to contact police.

Asmal  (left) was one of four militants shown taking instruction before carrying out the mission
Asmal (left) was one of four militants shown taking instruction before carrying out the mission
The four suicide bombers gave the ISIS one finger salute before carrying out two separate explosions in Baiji
The four suicide bombers gave the ISIS one finger salute before carrying out two separate explosions in Baiji

In photos posted online, Asmal’s face is not obscured by a balaclava and can be clearly seen.
Other photographs which were shared on Twitter by ISIS supporters show what could be the blast from a distance.

Photographs of the other fighters have also been released. They are believed to be Palestinian, German and Kuwaiti nationals.

Several other pictures also emerged, providing a rare glimpse into the planning of the suicide bomb mission.

Three of the four bombers can be seen sitting on a thin mattress, taking instructions on the mission from a commander who wears a khaki baseball cap.

Asmal appears to be holding an AK 47 rifle and listening intently as his instructor runs through his presentation from a laptop.

A mission statement claims that up to four suicide bombers were used to drive pickup trucks packed full of explosives.

The militants embrace under the cover of darkness before heading out on their murderous mission
The militants embrace under the cover of darkness before heading out on their murderous mission
Other images shared online by ISIS supporters appear to show one of the blasts near the oil refinery
Other images shared online by ISIS supporters appear to show one of the blasts near the oil refinery

The first attack saw a three suicide bombers target the local headquarters of an Iraqi Shi'ite militia group in al-Hijjaj - close to the oil refinery.

The second attack reportedly targeted Iraqi forces near the Baiji refinery. The insurgents who took part are thought to come from Russia and Kazakhstan.

The death of Abu Yusef al-Britani in an ISIS suicide mission comes just a few weeks after another British ISIS fighter blew himself up near the Iraqi city of Ramadi.

Fatlum Shalaku, 20, originally from London, drove a truck loaded with explosives into a government building last month.

He had originally left his home in Ladbroke Grove and travelled with his brother Flamur to Syria in 2013. After fighting together for the Al-Qaeda affiliated group Jabhat al-Nusra, the Shalaku brothers joined ISIS.

Flamur, 23, was killed in fighting last March, prompting his brother to sign up for a suicide bombing mission.

Like Abu Yusef al-Britani, another ISIS fighter, Kabir Ahmed, blew himself up in an ISIS suicide bomb mission in Baiji, back in November 2014.

Leaving behind his two children in Derby, 32-year-old Ahmed joined ISIS after serving time in prison under the anti-discrimination law in 2012.

One final image shows the cars in which the militants later died in driving off into the distance in Iraq
One final image shows the cars in which the militants later died in driving off into the distance in Iraq

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