Guilty.
BRuce
London's Islamists unusually mum
By Seth Rosen
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
July 9, 2005
London's notoriously outspoken Islamists, a media-savvy faction who have
publicly praised the September 11 hijackers and called for Islamic law in
Britain, have fallen unusually silent since Thursday's rush-hour attack on
commuters.
Sheik Omar Bakri Mohammed, the radical cleric known for giving his cell
phone number to reporters, did not answer yesterday or the previous day.
The Web site of the sheik's followers was offline, and Anjem Choudhary,
his top assistant, refused to comment on the blasts that left scores dead.
In contrast, Muslim clerics and residents of London condemned the
bombings without reservation, including one of Mr. Bakri's supporters.
"My reaction is the same as the British public -- it is an act of
terrorism and I'm deeply saddened," said Abu Bakar Siddique. "Many innocents
lives were lost and many Muslims died."
In his lectures and interviews, Mr. Bakri often walks a fine line
between the right to preach and the criminal offense of incitement of
violence.
He has repeatedly called the September 11 hijackers "magnificent," and
in Internet sermons, as reported by the Times of London, he implores Muslims
to fulfill their "duty" of jihad and to support the mujahideen abroad.
Mr. Bakri defended the March 2004 Madrid train bombing, and said that
British Muslims should "kill and be killed" for Islam.
To his young supporters, he provides religious guidance and advises them
on how to survive in what they perceive as a corrupt and racist society.
His detractors say that behind the cryptic language is an extremist
whose incendiary sermons radicalize disenchanted youth.
"Do they think they can continue in this anarchism without paying the
price?" Mr. Bakri asked more than 60 men who filled a community center in
East London in March. No more than a handful were over 25.
The Syrian-born Mr. Bakri was expelled from Saudi Arabia in 1986 for his
inflammatory preaching and involvement in the extremist group Hizb
ut-Tahrir. He eventually settled in London.
He rose to notoriety during the 1991 Persian Gulf war, when he said
Prime Minister John Major would be a legitimate target for assassination
once on Muslim soil. His public invective became too much for the Hizb
ut-Tahrir leadership, and in 1996 he resigned and formed Al-Muhajiroun.
Al-Muhajiroun disbanded in October 2004, amid a spate of public
criticism and heightened scrutiny by British authorities, even though the
sheik has continued to preach.
During an interview earlier this year at a McDonald's in East London,
Mr. Choudhary predicted there was a very high risk of a terror operation
happening in the coming months.
"Someone will take it into their own hands," he said. "I think it is
just a matter of time.
"The Muslim community is under siege ... and it is an obligation for
every Muslim to prepare themselves mentally and physically for any outcome
and eventuality," he said.
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