The men who barracked John Reid yesterday are leading Islamist radicals in Britain who have come to the attention of police on several occasions. Abu Izzadeen, the first to clash with the home secretary, attracted opprobrium and headlines when he refused to condemn the July 7 attacks on London. He has admitted attending camps in Britain and abroad to receive military training. Mr Izzadeen was spokesman for al-Ghurabaa, which its leaders now claim is disbanded. It was one of several successor groups to al-Muhajiroun, and both were believed to have been led by the extremist Omar Bakri Mohammed. Both groups are now banned.He told the BBC that the tube bombings had been "mujahideen activity" which would make people "wake up and smell the coffee". He said: "What I would say about those who do suicide operations or martyrdom operations is they're completely praiseworthy. I have no allegiance to the Queen whatsoever or to British society." Mr Izzadeen, 30, is also known as Omar Brooks and converted to Islam aged 17. His comments on the July 7 attacks led to the possibility of treason charges being brought against him, though officials say no decision has yet been made.
Mr Reid was also barracked by Anjem Choudary, who was a spokesman for Omar Bakri's organisations. He now says he does not belong to any group, but lectures at the London-based School of Sharia. At a protest outside the Danish embassy in London earlier this year, he said: "The fact is that 7/7 was brought upon the people of London and Britain by the foreign policy of Tony Blair. There is no reason why there should not be more suicide bombings in London."