Terror law in tatters as extremists go free – Times Online

Posted on February 17th, 2008 by .
Categories: International Terrorism, Murder on theo Van Gogh and related issues.

Terror law in tatters as extremists go free – Times Online

Five British Muslim men have been freed, pending a retrial, after being convicted of terrorism-related crimes.
Sean O’Neill, Crime and Security Editor

Dozens of anti-terrorist investigations and prosecutions are in jeopardy after senior judges yesterday quashed the convictions of five young Muslims for downloading extremist propaganda. Three Court of Appeal judges, led by the Lord Chief Justice, questioned whether they should ever have been prosecuted for merely possessing the material. The ruling means that in future the prosecution will have to prove that defendants intended to commit terrorist attacks. (more…)

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The ‘Lyrical Terrorist’ is among those who may benefit – Times Online

Posted on February 17th, 2008 by .
Categories: International Terrorism, Religious and Political Radicalization.

The ‘Lyrical Terrorist’ is among those who may benefit – Times Online

Sean O’Neill

Samina Malik, the self-styled “Lyrical Terrorist” who wrote poetry about beheading Western hostages, could be one of the first beneficiaries of yesterday’s Court of Appeal judgments.

Malik, 23, became the first woman to be convicted under terrorism legislation since the beginning of the War on Terror in 2001, not so much for the violent poetry that she wrote but the extremist Islamist literature, including the Mujahidin Poisons Handbook and a sniper rifle manual, on her computer.

She was convicted at the Old Bailey under Section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000. Peter Clarke, head of Scotland Yard’s Counter-Terrorism Command, welcomed her conviction and said: “Merely possessing this material is a serious criminal offence.”

The Appeal Court ruled yesterday, however, that merely possessing such literature was not an offence.

Matthew Parris, the Times columnist, was one of the first to air concerns about Malik’s conviction, asking whether she had been found guilty of a “thought crime”. Muhammad Abdul Bari, secretary-general of the Muslim Council of Britain, agreed. He told The Times young Muslims were being criminalised for having “silly thoughts”.

Malik, who was given a suspended jail sentence, is likely to appeal soon.

The rulings also have serious implications for a number of cases under investigation or awaiting trial. There are at least six suspects awaiting trial under Sections 57 and 58 of the 2000 Act and defence lawyers in each case will be studying the judgment to see if the cases against their clients can be challenged.

Chris Huhne, the Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, criticised the Terrorism Act 2000 as “another example of how the Government’s kneejerk drafting of new terrorist offences can lead to confusion from prosecutors and the waste of taxpayers’ money”.

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How a son’s handwritten note led to a rethink of terror law – Times Online

Posted on February 17th, 2008 by .
Categories: International Terrorism, Religious and Political Radicalization.

How a son’s handwritten note led to a rethink of terror law – Times Online

Sean O’Neill, Crime & Security Editor

Irfan Raja ran away from his family home in Ilford, East London, in February 2006, leaving behind a note that terrified his mother and father. In neat handwriting he told his parents that they would meet again in Paradise and urged them to “rejoice at the decision of their son”.

His parents had noted his religious strictness and feared that he planned to fight jihad overseas. He had gone no farther than Bradford, however, where he met four university students whom he had been in contact with over the internet.

Three days after he left home Mr Raja, 17, called his family and was persuaded to return. He was arrested by the anti-terrorist unit of Scotland Yard. Detectives also arrested the men they described as his co-conspirators — Aitzaz Zafar and Awaab Iqbal, from Rochdale, Usman Malik, from Wolverhampton, and Akbar Butt, from Southall, West London. (more…)

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Guides lauded jihad, 9/11 hijackers | The Australian

Posted on February 17th, 2008 by martijn.
Categories: International Terrorism, Religious and Political Radicalization.

Guides lauded jihad, 9/11 hijackers | The Australian

Stephen Lunn and Richard Kerbaj | February 15, 2008CHILDREN should be raised to embrace violent jihad and Muslim wives should not discourage their husbands from becoming martyrs in the name of Allah, according to documents seized from an alleged Melbourne terror cell and cited in court yesterday.

(more…)

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Guides lauded jihad, 9/11 hijackers | The Australian

Posted on February 17th, 2008 by .
Categories: International Terrorism, Religious and Political Radicalization.

Guides lauded jihad, 9/11 hijackers | The Australian

Stephen Lunn and Richard Kerbaj | February 15, 2008CHILDREN should be raised to embrace violent jihad and Muslim wives should not discourage their husbands from becoming martyrs in the name of Allah, according to documents seized from an alleged Melbourne terror cell and cited in court yesterday.

(more…)

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The Journal » British students being recruited to jihadist Facebook groups

Posted on February 17th, 2008 by .
Categories: Blogosphere.

The Journal » British students being recruited to jihadist Facebook groups
British students being recruited to jihadist Facebook groups
Groups calling for armed Jihad active on Facebook Leader of banned organisation claims success in actively recruiting students Terror suspect on trial used networking site up until time of arrest (more…)

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The Journal » Facebook: the darker side of social networking

Posted on February 17th, 2008 by .
Categories: Blogosphere.

The Journal » Facebook: the darker side of social networking

It is important that we understand social networking sites are not benign by design, rather by practice

Hollywood has spent the best part of a decade convincing us that the main danger posed by the internet comes from bank-robbing computer hackers. The tabloid press believes that paedophiles pose an exponentially greater threat than they did fifteen years ago as a result of instant messaging and email. Meanwhile entire software industries have been set up to tap into people’s collective fear of that mythical beast, the computer virus. However it is the Chinese who have the clearest understanding of the danger posed: the internet allows people to connect with others, regardless of geography, allowing them to communicate and share information in a way that is anonymous and largely free of enforceable state regulations.Barely a week goes by without the national media waxing lyrical about “social networking websites” in an attempt to bridge the largest inter-generational cultural gap since rock ‘n’ roll first appeared in the fifties. The fascination, in particular, with Facebook groups and the various political campaigns and social statements they make is repeatedly highlighted.

However, the “soft news” approach fails to tackle one of the key issues that such a phenomenon has given rise to. Social networking websites, and the ubiquitous Facebook more so than others, allow for the finding and near instantaneous assimilation of like-minded individuals into an online community.

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