Terror arrests anger community

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6320021.stm

16:55 GMT, Thursday, 1 February 2007

One day after the nine terror arrests in the Birmingham area, the local communities have been assessing the impact of the police operation. Some claim the arrests and the vast amount of media coverage are likely to cause lasting damage to community relations. SALMA YAQOOB, COUNCILLOR SPARKBROOK WARD Councillor Salma Yaqoob is angry about damage to the community "The damage that's done when areas are referred to as hotbeds of radicalisation, it does Birmingham no good. "We have actually an excellent model of cohesion here, quite a lot to be proud of and what's happening now is the fear is going to be increased, regardless of what facts emerge later, and we're saying 'keep the legal process intact'. "We've got a strong judiciary, we've got a strong legal process, but sadly a lot of it can be contaminated and we can have a trial by media, which is the last thing we need in this country." ALLAH DITTA, COMMUNITY BUSINESS LEADER Allah Ditta, who is a member of a mosque in the Alum Rock area of Birmingham, says people should not forget what happened at Forest Gate and other sites where Muslims were arrested and later released without charge. "When they raided those premises there was a big hype in the media and everything and when those people were sort-of discharged there was nobody mentioned, even in the newspaper. "[They didn't] even get one line mention - nobody really knows about them. And then the suspicion remains with those people and with those communities and we remain to pick up the pieces." ADAM YOSEF, SALTLEY GATE PEACE GROUP "People who got along with each other perfectly fine, Muslims and non-Muslims, Muslims and Muslims even, people of different races and cultures, suddenly are looking at their neighbours and thinking is this the enemy within? "Should we be suspicious? Should my children not play with these children? Suddenly a community falls apart. "Years of bonding and bringing people up and bringing them together, working with the police and each other, suddenly falls part because of one incident and how it was maybe not dealt with as good as it could have been." TAHIR ALAM, MUSLIM COUNCIL OF BRITAIN Tahir Alam is assistant secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain and lives in Birmingham. He feels British foreign policy has led to some Muslims becoming radicalised. "From a Muslim community point of view it's also about having a balanced understanding of Islam so that when people make suggestions which are extremist, they are actually able to rationalise them and say this is not according to the teachings of Islam and it's in fact contrary to the teachings of Islam." ASSAD BEGG, STUDENT "We need a minimum police presence in this area, where there's already increased frustration and anger. "We need police to talk to community leaders, to talk to the Muslim community, not carry out a raid then talk to the Muslim community in a feeble attempt to try to talk to Muslim leaders by giving out leaflets. This is not how we help community relations."

Source: BBC News

Anger over anti-British hate posters

Source: http://icbirmingham.icnetwork.co.uk/mail/news/tm_headline=anger-over-anti-british-hate-posters&method=full&objectid=19184248&siteid=50002-name_page.html

May 24 2007

By Poppy Brady, Birmingham Mail

OFFENSIVE flyposters urging "Muslims to rise against British oppression" are upsetting residents who have been bombarded with such radical material for years, an inter-faith community group claimed. The Saltley Gate Peace Group has moved swiftly to condemn the latest batch of propaganda which has appeared all over Alum Rock on telephone boxes, bus stops and street lamps. The group, based at Saltley Methodist Church in Alum Rock Road, has written to West Midlands Police and the city council urging that the controversial posters are ripped down immediately. The offending material, which is littering several roads including Alum Rock Road and Coventry Road, has been there for the past two weeks. Adam Yosef, who chairs the SGPG, said: "It brings great distress to residents in Saltley and the wider inner city areas, when communities who have worked so hard over the years to build and regenerate their neighbourhoods, are suddenly faced with the problem of vandalism on such a large scale. "The material itself is radical in nature but anonymous in its origin, with no contact details for any group or organisation. "In the past similar material has upset local residents, although attempts to use any kind of propaganda, religious or otherwise, to disrupt the harmonious relations between people of various faiths in the inner city have failed." Mr Yosef said similar material had been posted in the past by radical political and religious groups Al-Muhajiroun, Al-Ghurabaa and Hizb-ut-Tahrir. Material dating back to 2003 and 2004 is still on public property. He added: "The material is political in nature, but unlike in the past, it doesn't glorify or promote terrorism. However, that said, it is still vandalism. "Flyposting an entire community does nothing but cause contempt for the individuals responsible along with their message, which could, in this case, undeservedly reflect poorly on the Islamic faith." A Birmingham city council spokesman said: "We take this issue very seriously and are looking into it."

Source: Birmingham Mail

A moral victory for Salma Yaqoob in Birmingham

Source: http://www.socialistworker.co.uk/art.php?id=6452

Salma took second place with a total of 10,498 votes, some 27.5 percent. Godsiff came first with 13,787.

Salma described her vote as a “moral victory”, adding, “People no longer have to vote for the ‘least worst’ party. Today we have made history and it is now time for change — time for Respect.

“This is a fantastic and unexpected breakthrough. Labour has been complacent about its vote for so long in this area.

“For Respect to come from nowhere and get this result is amazing. With this result we’ve built a good foundation for Respect.

“There were three other Muslim candidates in this constituency. My result shows that there is no such thing as a Muslim block vote — every vote cast for me was a positive vote for Respect.

“We hope to carry on campaigning over the issues we fought for before the election — in particular getting people to the G8 protests in Edinburgh in July.”

---

‘Anti-war, pro-public services’

Adam Yosef , a leading Birmingham Respect activist, describes the atmosphere around Salma’s campaign.

When the vote was announced several Lib Dems said they couldn’t believe how well we’d done. We managed to do something in a few months that ought to have taken decades.

Everyone is talking about Salma and her campaign and Roger Godsiff is panicking now — when you take 10,000 votes off someone, that’s a big thing.

The war was a feature of our whole campaign, but it wasn’t the only thing. What really summed is up was the final postcard we put out.

It showed a picture of Salma and Godsiff having a boxing match. In Salma’s corner it said “anti-war, pro-public services”. In Godsiff’s it said “pro-war, pro-privatisation”.

The closure of the Longbridge MG Rover plant hasn’t been as big an issue in this constituency as it has been in other areas of Birmingham.

Nevertheless, Salma went down to meet Longbridge workers who were holding a rally on election day. She was the only candidate to show her face there.

We sent a couple of people to every polling station in the constituency. People wanted to go back out after they finished their shift because the response was so good.

We had a cavalcade with a message to voters broadcast in five different languages. We had the biggest presence in the constituency.

We are now trying to identify which wards are strongest for us in preparation for the council elections next year.

---

© Socialist Worker (unless otherwise stated). You may republish if you include an active link to the original.

Bigley's body was 'dumped south of Baghdad'

Full Text :COPYRIGHT 2004 Newsquest Media Group

Byline: Cameron Simpson;

THE body of Ken Bigley, killed by his kidnappers last week after three weeks in captivity, was dumped just south of Baghdad on Friday, sources close to the insurgency said yesterday. Mr

Bigley, 62, was beheaded by followers of Abu Musab al Zarqawi, the Jordanian militant, on Thursday, and a videotape of the killing was handed to an Arabic television channel on Friday.

Insurgent sources said last week that Mr Bigley was killed in the town of Latifiya, about 20 miles south-west of Baghdad. Those reports have not been independently confirmed. A spokesman for the Foreign Office said: ''At the moment we haven't got or found the body.

We are making efforts to find it.'' He declined to comment on where they were looking. The British embassy in Baghdad had no information. In Birmingham, the Central Mosque said a book of condolence for Mr Bigley had been stolen, and other tributes to the British engineer had been destroyed. Muslim leaders set up tributes at the city's main mosque to express the community's horror.


All the imams and Muslim leaders from around Birmingham, which has a large Muslim population, signed the book and cards. Candles and pictures of Mr Bigley had been placed outside.

Adam Yosef, mosque spokesman, said: ''On Saturday evening there were a few problems with a few individuals who were threatening to take the book away. ''On Sunday morning the caretaker found the book was gone. ''The following day the tribute was also damaged and ruined. Parts of it were stolen, posters were removed and signs were ripped off. It's a disgusting thing to do.''

A second book of condolence has been opened and will be forwarded to the Bigley family in Liverpool along with other tributes.

Source Citation:"Bigley's body was 'dumped south of Baghdad'." The Herald (Glasgow, Scotland) (Oct 13, 2004):

A new kind of terror comes to these shores

Source:The Scotsman (Edinburgh, Scotland) (Feb 1, 2007): p.1. (906 words)

Full Text :COPYRIGHT 2007 Scotsman Publications Ltd.

Byline: James Kirkup

EYES wide open to the camera and a knife at his throat, his death would have burned a terrible new image into Britain's collective nightmare of Islamic terrorism. That is the bloody outcome intelligence officers believe was averted yesterday with a string of arrests in Birmingham.

The men arrested had been planning to abduct a British soldier and behead him in a internet broadcast, security sources said yesterday. Intelligence analysts said the plot was disturbing proof that Britain's domestic terrorist threat is still evolving.

Moving on from bomb attacks intended to kill and maim as many as possible, extremists are instead trying to spark political panic and social tension with individual acts of murder live on camera.

The new tactics of terror have been drawn directly from Iraq, where several hundred British Muslims have taken part in the bloody insurgency against Western troops and the country's post-war government.

In 2004, Britain was traumatised by the abduction and beheading in Iraq of Ken Bigley, a British engineer who was killed after being taken hostage. Still, the worst atrocities of the Iraqi turmoil have been committed by Muslims against Muslims, and so it could have been in the UK.

The soldier targeted in yesterday's alleged plot was, like them, a British-born Muslim, the plan to kill him apparently calculated to inflame the tensions within British Islam still further.
The nine men being questioned in a Coventry police station last night were said to have fallen under the sway of extremist interpretations of Islam as they grew up in Britain's second biggest city.

Yet their victim, who was raised in the same area in the same wider community, made an entirely different choice: joining the British Army and serving Queen and country. Last year, he was deployed to Afghanistan, trying to break the grip of the Taleban militia.

Last night, the targeted soldier, an unmarried man in his 20s, was under police protection, and the Ministry of Defence was reviewing security precautions around the 330 or so declared
Muslims serving in the British armed forces.

Police and MI5 officers involved in the six-month operation that led to yesterday's arrests believe the plan was to abduct the soldier then issue a series of films of his captivity via the internet, before eventually beheading him.

Pre-dawn raids were launched after intelligence officers at MI5 declared a "threat- to-life" situation, assessing that there was an "intolerable risk" that the plotters were about to act on their plan. Despite that conclusion, the official government assessment of the terror threat to Britain remained last night unchanged at "severe".

Combining broadcasts of a kidnapped soldier with demands for British withdrawal from Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as warnings to other British Muslims, the plotters were said to have been hoping to put enormous pressure on government ministers and traumatise the nation as a whole.

Professor David Capitanchik, an expert on terrorism at Aberdeen University, said: "What we have witnessed today is a change in terrorist tactics. This is something that happens more and more as splinter cells constantly try to slip under counter-terrorist surveillance."

He continued: "The security forces have yet again done a good job in foiling this plot, but if the scale of the threat is as large as we believe it to be, we will yet again need to bulk up the numbers of personnel working in counter-terrorism."

John Reid, the Home Secretary, said yesterday's arrests demonstrated again the "real and serious nature of the terrorist threat we face".
He declined to discuss details of the case and later issued a statement warning the media not to prejudice any eventual trial that the arrested men might face.

None of the nine was charged with any crime yesterday and police have 28 days to question them. Assistant Chief Constable David Shaw of West Midlands police, who oversaw yesterday's operation, appeared to signal a lengthy process of questioning and investigation, saying that officers were "at the foothills of what is a very, very major investigation".

About 150,000 of Birmingham's one million population are Muslims.
Mr Shaw praised Muslim community leaders in the city for their co-operation and understanding over yesterday's arrests. But Islamic leaders in the districts where the arrests took place warned that the operation had harmed community cohesion.

"I just wish the police could have been more discreet because, at the moment, it's just suspicion. At the moment, the whole of the community are labelled as terror suspects," said Allah Ditta, of the Alum Rock Islamic Centre.

And Adam Yosef, of the interfaith Saltley Gate Peace Group, said the raids had "affected our relationships between local community and police and between the community itself".
The city's Islamic community also produced the only British Muslim soldier to be killed in Afghanistan.

Lance Corporal Jabron Hashmi, 24, a member of the Intelligence Corps, was killed in Afghanistan last July. His death attracted nationwide political and media attention.
It also led al-Ghurabaa, a radical Muslim group, to post images on the internet of the dead man wreathed in flames, accusing him of "terrorism" against his fellow Muslims.

Al-Ghurabaa has since been banned, but several of the figures behind the group remain at large and are said to use internet sites to spread extremist interpretations of Islam.
According to local MPs briefed by West Midlands police officers, the operation that led to yesterday's arrests began six months ago, shortly after L-Cpl Habron's death.

Source Citation:"A new kind of terror comes to these shores." The Scotsman (Edinburgh, Scotland) (Feb 1, 2007): 1.

Birmingham's Muslims fear reprisals after anti-terror raids

Source:The Independent (London, England) (Feb 1, 2007): p.6. (1435 words)

Full Text :COPYRIGHT 2007 Independent News & Media PLC

Byline: Terri Judd

It was before dawn when members of Birmingham's Asian community awoke to the sound of smashing glass and splintering wood as anti-terror police broke into 12 addresses across the eastern districts of their city.

Outside the blue-a n dwhite police cordons, locals gathered to stare with a mixture of bafflement and horror as forensics officers combed through the properties. Many expressed amazement that apparently upstanding members of the community had been a rrested. As the details of the alleged plot to target a Muslim in the British armed forces emerged, shock turned to bewilderment.

Anxiously, localsinsisted that they were as horrified by the work of terrorists as any otherBritish nationals, that Islam was a religion of peace and that they would never condone violence in the name of faith.

A community which six years ago, before the September 11 attacks, was largely left in peace, famed for its diligence and law abiding nature, was again associated with terrorism. Wearily Muslims,Hindus and Sikhs alike voiced their fears of abuse to come.

"It is bad for the whole Asian community," said a 58-year-old Sikh accountant. "The minority gives the majority a bad name."

"We are not against joining the British Army," said Zaheer Iqbal, 27, a shopkeeper. "It is entirely up to the individual. It is a good thing, an honest job. We do not believe in hurting anyone innocent."

Undoubtedly religious fervour has gripped many of the disenchanted youths of the area. Naji Gohel, 64, said he was appalled to watch young Islamic men hurl abuse recently at women entering a nearby Hindu temple. "It is not Islamic," said the 64-year-old, who arrived from east Africa 35 years ago. "People who live here must respect the law. If you want Islamic law: go back home. If you want that type of government, why are you here?"
But even young men who expressed their ferocious opposition to the war in Iraq and the deaths of Muslims, remembered with solemnity the sacrifice made by L/Cpl Jabron Hashmi, who died in Afghanistan in July last year. They spoke of their pride in the young man - one of just 330 Muslim personnel in the British forces - who became the first of their own to be killed in the "war on terror".

Wajid Ditta, 22, said he would certainly counsel any friend considering joining the military to think again but balked at the idea that to do so would make him a "collaborator".

"Personally I would advise against it because we all know that in war, innocent civilians are killed. But if these people do not agree with Muslim soldiers fighting against Muslims in Iraq, they should have a dialogue - talk to them," he said.

"Some people would agree with joining the Army and some would not," said 16-year-old Anees Ahmed. "I would be happy with anyone who joined, I would think it was a good thing for a young man. Why attack another Muslim? If he is British, this is his country and if he wants to serve his country that is good."

Many expressed horror that they might be associated with extremists.
In the Asian communities of Sparkhill, Washwood Heath, Kingstanding and Edgbaston - where eight people were arrested in raids and a ninth was later detained on a motorway - the community shuddered at the ramifications. Officers searched residential homes, two bookshops, an internet cafe and a shop.

Abid Hussain, woke as police raided an address in Jackson Road, Alum Rock, and arrested a man. "I was woken by a bang," he said. "I thought there had been an accident. I looked into the street and saw eight or 10 police in the street and more rushing into the house. I don't think they were armed but some were wearing black suits. At about 5am, they took someone away."
Fullah Bahakam, a mother-of-three who lives yards from the scene of araid in Poplar Road, Sparkhill,said: "We don't like this problem. Why do they [alleged terrorists] have to do this here? Everybody will think we are terrorists. Muslims do not like to harm anyone. We are really worried something will happen to us now. We just want to live in peace."

A city multifaith organisation called for calm. Adam Yosef, chairman of the Saltley Gate Peace Group, said: "As communities very diverse in their nature, the arrests will come as a great shock for the people of Alum Rock and Sparkhill but we must remain united and work with the police in rooting out any extremism and threats within the community - regardless of race or religion."

Others were more worried that radicals in their midst would only serve to influence their young.
Shabir Hussain, chairman of the Ludlow Road mosque, said: "People don't trust their own children any more. It's causing difficulties inside families. Yo u feel like you should challenge your son or daughter: 'Where are you going at night? What are you watching on TV? What are you doing on the internet?' After this kind of thing, 100 per cent of families are worried."

At 4am 12 addresses - four buisnesses and eight homes - were raided in the Sparkhill, Washwood Heath, Kingstanding and Edgbaston areas. Eight men were arrested.

An Islamic bookstore called Maktabah, in Stratford Road in the Sparkhill district was raided. An address in Poplar Road, Sparkhill, was also searched. It is believed to be linked to the bookstore.
Baswant Kant, who lives in Stratford Road, near the junction with Poplar Road, said about 55 police officers " turned up in white vans" in the early hours. "They went into shops and restaurants along the road -a lot of people got arrested," he said.

Khan General Store, on the corner of Foxton Road and Jackson Road was raided. A man believed to be linked to the shop was arrested.

A man said his cousin was one of the men arrested in Jackson Road in Alum Rock. "We can vouch for him he is innocent. He doesn't even have time to go to Friday prayers -that's how busy he is."

A mobile phone supplier and internet cafe, ' Blade Communications', was also searched by the police

At about 3.30pm police announce they have just arrested a ninth suspect in a vehicle on the motorway near Birmingham city centre.

According to the latest figures, between September 2001 and 30 June 2006 1,047 people were arrested for offences under the Terrorism Act, and the number will have risen since then. Of those, 174 have been charged with non-Terrorism Act offences, 69 have been detained and dealt with by the Immigration Service and 158 have been charged with terrorism offences. More than 90 are awaiting trial or are on trial over terrorism-related offences.

Police raid house in Wood Green, north London, in which ricin is said to be found. Seven north Africans arrested. All but one is cleared. One man, convicted of murder of police officer during arrest, is found guilty on ricin plot charge.
Seven arrested after police raid Finsbury Park mosque, north London. Cleric Abu Hamza later convicted of soliciting murder and racial hatred.

Troops deployed at Heathrow after intelligence that Islamists have smuggled portable antiaircraft missiles into Britain. No arrests.
A man arrested in Gloucester, on suspicion of having links with al-Qa'ida. Charged with conspiring with 'shoe bomber' Richard Reid and convicted of terrorism offences.
Eight held after half a ton of fertiliser found in Hanwell, west London. Charged under the Explosive Substances Act. On trial.

Intelligence agents in Britain and US foil alleged chemical bomb plot in Britain. Intended target was believed to be London.
Ten arrested in Manchester raids over suspected bomb plot. Three released without charge, and six released but rearrested for other offences. One deported.

Many arrested over Tube and bus bomb plot in London. Four on trial at Woolwich Crown Court. Two trials involving 11 other people on related offences due to take place this year.
Ten arrested in West Midlands, London and Derby on suspicion of terrorism. Five released, five questioned in immigration inquiry.

Raids on houses in Forest Gate, east London, lead to two brothers being arrested, one was shot in shoulder by police. Later released without charge.
Police investigating aircraft bomb plot raid homes in Walthamstow, east London and High Wycombe. 24 arrests, 17 charged with terrorism-related offences. Awaiting trial.
Raid on Chinese restaurant in south London and search of Islamic school in Crowborough, East Sussex; 14 arrested and 10 charged with terrorism offences. Awaiting trial.
Two arrested in Halifax, West Yorkshire. Due to appear in court next week.

Source Citation:"Birmingham's Muslims fear reprisals after anti-terror raids.(NEWS)." The Independent (London, England) (Feb 1, 2007): 6.