Convert to Islam Tests Boundaries of Germany’s Terror Laws

Islamist preacher Sven Lau talks during a rally in July
in Hamburg, Germany.

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Standoff between Islamist preacher Sven Lau and German security agents shows the difficulty of drawing a clear line between opinion and sedition.

WUPPERTAL, Germany—Fundamentalist Islamic preacher Sven Lau claims he has a simple test to separate undercover officers from passersby. He gives them the finger. If they don’t respond, he said, “they’re intelligence agents.”

German authorities have spent at least eight years monitoring Mr. Lau, a 34-year-old ex-firefighter from a Catholic family who now practices a strict form of Islam known as Salafism.

Officials say Mr. Lau is one of the most prominent Islamic preachers in Germany, with a charismatic message that lures young Germans into radical Muslim circles. The head of Germany’s domestic intelligence agency called Mr. Lau one of the country’s “best-known propagandists.” Authorities allege Mr. Lau inspired some of his followers to join Islamic militants in Syria and Iraq, and fear they will eventually spawn terror attacks in Germany and the West. Read on and comment » | Anton Troianovski | Sunday, November 02, 2014

Britain Soft on Radical Islam Yet Again: Radical Preacher, Abu Qatada, Is Released from Prison
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THE TELEGRAPH: Abu Qatada, the radical Islamic cleric described as Osama bin Laden’s “right-hand man in Europe”, has been released from jail after a judge ruled that there were no grounds to keep him in prison.

The decision to allow him to return to his home in London – where he will receive around £1,000 per month in state benefits – made a mockery of the government’s promise to crack down on terror suspects, and embarrassed the Home Office, which had pledged to deport Qatada to Jordan to face terror charges.

The Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, said she was “extremely disappointed” at the court’s decision to bail Qatada, while the Conservatives branded the decision “offensive”.

Mr Justice Mitting signed an order to release Qatada on bail, with strict conditions, following an earlier Court of Appeal decision to refuse his deportation on the grounds that it would breach human rights law. Abu Qatada: Islamic Cleric Is Released from Jail >>> By Duncan Gardham and Gordon Rayner | June 18, 2008

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Do we need new laws, or do we need more decisive action?
TIMESONLINE: The Government could use Asbos in a fresh effort to tackle extremist preachers and other "radicalisers", the Attorney General announced today.

According to new guidance drawn up by Lord Goldsmith, extremists who preach hate and violence should be made to "face the full force of the law", with more efforts to prosecute them under existing legislation and to use Anti Social Behaviour Orders (Asbos) to prevent them holding meetings and leading young people astray. New measures to tackle extremist preachers

Mark Alexander