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| Britain | |
| Would-be London boomers' e-mail trail leads back to Pakistan | |
| 2004-04-01 | |
| I am surprised 'most to death... Police computer experts were last night trawling through email records from a West Sussex internet cafe as the intelligence agencies tried to establish links between eight UK terror suspects and senior militants in Pakistan. As detectives continued to question the young men suspected of plotting a major bomb attack in Britain, MI5 and MI6 continued their investigations into influential foreign figures who might have been advising them. The extension came as a man was charged in Canada with helping terrorist activity in London after being arrested on Monday. Mohammed Momin Khawaja, 29, a software developer, appeared in an Ottawa court in shackles and a bullet-proof vest. Mr Khawaja, a Canadian of Pakistani descent, is alleged to have knowingly participated in or contributed to the activities of a terrorist group, and knowingly facilitated a terrorist activity. The offences allegedly took place "on or between November 10 2003 and March 29 2004 at or near the city of Ottawa and at or near the city of London." Mr Khawaja said he had recently travelled to London to meet a prospective bride. His brother, Qasim, insisted he was innocent, adding: "They are looking for something that does not exist. They want to fabricate or create it somehow." The British detainees being questioned in London were born and brought up in England, but seven are of Pakistani descent, and counter-terrorist sources are confident that they will unearth international connections. "More will surface on the external aspects [of the alleged bomb plot]," a source familiar with the operation said. Officials made it clear that Pakistan was in their sights. Anti-terrorist officers think that some of the suspects may have sent and received emails from associates and mentors, who advised them on waging "holy war" on Britain. There is no suggestion that the proprietor of the internet cafe was aware of this. Several of the suspects had visited Pakistan and at least one is thought to have undergone paramilitary training in a terrorist camp there. One is 32 years old, but the others are all under 22 - three of them teenagers. This could indicate a worrying trend of extreme militancy among young British Muslims attracted to ideology-driven violence. They are not particularly religious, intelligence sources say, and are not directly linked to known al-Qaida figures. They are, however, inspired by al-Qaida anti-western ideology, and perhaps motivated by the invasion of Iraq and the American-backed campaign against al-Qaida's leaders and their sympathisers in north-western Pakistan. One source familiar with the operation summed up the fears, albeit in crude terms. "It is one thing having foreigners doing things against us", he said "but to have people born and bred and raised in the UK allegedly engaged in preparing a terrorist act is pretty shocking." Police and MI5 agents had been secretly monitoring the suspects for weeks, and intercepted communications form a crucial part of the inquiry. There are fears that other, older suspects might have evaded arrest. "This is an intelligence-led investigation, not a fishing expedition," a senior police source said. "There is a degree of concern over the ages of those arrested. But there has been a long covert operation and officers are confident that now is the time to 'go live.'" Ansar Khan, Ahmad's father, a taxi driver based at Gatwick airport, admitted that his nephew Omar had visited the Pakistan border, but denied that he had any involvement with al-Qaida. He said the family had flown out and brought him home after about six weeks. "My cousins are intelligence officers in the Pakistan army and they helped us find him," he said. He also claimed that MI5 agents had approached Omar and Shujah on two occasions and told them they should go to Pakistan. But police and security sources denied this. Omar Bakri Mohammed, leader of al-Muhajiroun, a radical Muslim organisation, said he recognised "three or four" of the names of those arrested as former members, including Omar Khyam. In 2000 the 40-strong Crawley group dissociated itself from al-Muhajiroun, saying it was not radical enough, he claimed. Mr Bakri Mohammed said he did not believe the young men had been involved in terrorist activity, but admitted that they had disagreed with his view that Muslims were under a "covenant of security" in the UK, and that any act of terror carried out on British soil would be against the Koran.
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| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #13 Fred Pruitt censors truth while Americans die in Iraq on basis of lies. |
| Posted by: MI6 TROLL 2004-04-01 8:08:00 AM |
| #12 LH: Right on: that was a very fine statement as well as a very American sentiment. Lets all keep our minds, as well as our eyes, open when it comes to our fellow citizens. |
| Posted by: Secret Master 2004-04-01 7:54:48 PM |
| #11 I liked .com's post. Funny, and unfortunately more true than not, as a general observation. (And I'm sure .com is not advocating the wholesale "booming" of anyone who's a Moslem). While I appreciate where you're coming from, Liberalhawk, the fact is, most Moslems consider being a Moslem a kind of "team sport" thing. Really. And they're very loyal "fans" in that regard. You would had to have been around a lot of them to understand this. The report says the boys in London weren't regarded as "particularly religious." As Moslems, they don't have to be religious to participate as "Moslems." As long as you're a "Moslem", you're included. See, in their thinking as Moslems, Moslems are Moslems first--not UK citizens first. Of course there are exceptions, thank goodness, but it is nevertheless an identifiable cultural norm--and I've seen it the same across all nationalities. It is interesting that the more intelligent and pro-social Moslems generally tend to identify with their country of origin first. Their "Moslemness" takes a clear second place in comparison. I've also noticed that, in general, Moslems enjoy intrigue immensely--again, another cultural norm. Gets them all juiced up. (The boy's father "also claimed that MI5 agents had approached Omar and Shujah on two occasions and told them they should go to Pakistan." Right. Sure they did. Makes a good story, though, huh?) These kinds of crazy claims are probably why so many young men are joining the ranks. All of a sudden they get to feel very important--like they can make a diference. (The father's silly accusation also kind of proved .com's point #2, in a way.) So, keep on profiling, .com. You're gonna be right more than you're gonna be wrong. And for any and all the nice-people Moslems--keep a light on. |
| Posted by: ex-lib 2004-04-01 3:47:22 PM |
| #10 LH - Ptah - Fine, boys. What I said was the profiling assumtion must be to check them out from stem to stern. We have have a shitload of stories right here on RB where the entire family was, indeed, rotten - especially when the father of the RoP Mooslim Clan is rotten. Remember? Am I wrong? So I am saying check them out and make your assumptions based upon caution. I did not say shoot them all, now did I? I am soooooo glad you guys are soooooo wonderful and soooooo just. Congrats. No kidding. What you say means that in everyday life, I would find you guys to be upstanding and nice guys. That's cool as hell. On your own time and in your own lives that is peachy. B. U. T. ... If you are a security official of a Gov't, however, in that capacity as a security official I (and an untold number of terrorism victims around the world) would much prefer you lose your halo and get suspicious as hell. Okay - are you ready? If nothing else, do it for the children, heh. And don't forget the puppies and baby ducks, too. Grins & Regards to you both. |
| Posted by: .com 2004-04-01 1:34:29 PM |
| #9 I will ALWAYS treat individuals as individuals. No collective guilt - not for muslims, not for Jews, not for Christian fundamentalists, not for White South Africans, not for Germans, not for Arabs, not for Jewish settlers on the West Bank, not for Pashtuns, not for Poles, not for Serbs, not for Turks, not for Palestinians, not for capitalists. Its not what you ARE, its what you DO. Totally agree with you, LiberalHawk. People who identify strongly with a group gets their attitude of how to react if a member of the group goes astray from the group itself, and is a good way to judge them. In my church, the reaction to an apostate is to pray for them. In Islam, it's a death sentance. Go figure why the lefty libs think christians are the bigger threat than Muslims... |
| Posted by: Ptah 2004-04-01 12:53:47 PM |
| #8 Several of the suspects had visited Pakistan and at least one is thought to have undergone paramilitary training in a terrorist camp there. Imagine that - a terrorist camp in Pakistan. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2004-04-01 11:50:21 AM |
| #7 Dot com I KNOW that MANY muslims see themselves as muslims first. This does not prove that either ALL or even MOST do. And it does not FOLLOW that someone who sees themselves as a muslim first necessarily wants to go around booming things. I got news for you dot com - i know people who think of themselves as Jews first. aside from not proving the same about ALL jews, it is also the case that these people dont go around booming non-Jews. In fact they are MORE likely to be concerned about their security in a non-Jewish world, and to want to pressure their fellow Jews to "make nice" to avoid antisemitism. I suspect that at least a few Jews who opposed the Iraq war fall in this category. If you havent grown up where people see a newspaper headline and ask "is it good for the Jews?" you dont know what i mean. I assume plenty of muslims get up and see a headline of a terror bombing, and their first thought is "oh, shit, like this is the last thing we needed!" IE theyre thinking of their interests as MUSLIMS, not as good patriots, but this doesnt make them real keen on terror bombings. I will ALWAYS treat individuals as individuals. No collective guilt - not for muslims, not for Jews, not for Christian fundamentalists, not for White South Africans, not for Germans, not for Arabs, not for Jewish settlers on the West Bank, not for Pashtuns, not for Poles, not for Serbs, not for Turks, not for Palestinians, not for capitalists. Its not what you ARE, its what you DO. In that I am proudly a liberal, in the broadest sense, even if i vote for Dubya this November. |
| Posted by: Liberalhawk 2004-04-01 11:21:37 AM |
| #6 [Troll droppings deleted] |
| Posted by: Murray TROLL 2004-04-01 8:08:00 AM |
| #5 So the e-mail trailed back to noble Pakistan, big deal. I expect he just needed some legal advice. |
| Posted by: Abu Divorce Lawyer 2004-04-01 8:01:16 AM |
| #4 the 40-strong Crawley group dissociated itself from al-Muhajiroun, saying it was not radical enough, he claimed Blimey - thought that was as radical as they could get? |
| Posted by: Howard UK 2004-04-01 7:00:53 AM |
| #3 Here we have 2 clearly defined Rules O' Thumb for Profiling Who Be An Asshat: 1) Muslims as Muslims first (and always, LH). 2) Families are nests, breeding grounds, if one is rotten - the whole lot is rotten. And if such info is available for parsing: If they have any Goddamned relatives in Asshatistan, what sort are they? Refer to Rule #2 above for classification and sorting. Now SORT. |
| Posted by: .com 2004-04-01 1:55:57 AM |
| #2 Ansar Khan, Ahmad's father, a taxi driver. You talking about me, Yo you talking about me, PUNK! |
| Posted by: Lucky 2004-04-01 1:24:29 AM |
#1 Would-be London boomers' e-mail trail leads back to PakistanTap, tap ... I gotta take my surprise meter in for service; it just won't budge off zero. "It is one thing having foreigners doing things against us", he said "but to have people born and bred and raised in the UK allegedly engaged in preparing a terrorist act is pretty shocking."Not as shocking as your naivete, buddy. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2004-04-01 1:21:00 AM |