TIMESONLINE: The extremist cleric Abu Qatada has issued a 6,000-word rallying cry to his followers from inside one of Britain’s most secure prison units.
The Palestinian preacher hails the “victory” of the Mujahidin and claims that his treatment has helped to radicalise a new generation of young British Muslims.
Despite demanding his freedom, he says that “the gift of prison” has helped him to lose more than 50lb (22kg) in weight. He even suggests that a vigorous exercise programme appears to have cured his diabetes and back trouble.
The cleric boasts of being told by Bilal Abdullah, the NHS doctor jailed for the car bomb attacks in London and Glasgow in 2007, that he was heavily influenced by the cleric’s taped sermons. He describes the bomber, who narrowly failed in his attempts to blow up a nightclub and airport terminal, as “truthfully a man from the men of Islam, in knowledge, action, steadfastness and manhood”.
His communiqué was smuggled out of Long Lartin high-security jail, Worcestershire, and is circulating on jihadi websites and forums, where it is attracting widespread comment. The ease with which it has been distributed is an embarrassment for Jack Straw, the Justice Secretary, who is in charge of prisons, and Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, who leads the Government’s counter-terrorism strategy. >>> Sean O’Neill, Crime and Security Editor and Richard Ford, Home Correspondent | Saturday, April 4, 2009
