WP 10 : Securitization and Religious Divides in Europe after 9/11

Articles

• Denmark: Murder plot suspects to remain in jail

  12 August 2008, by The Copenhagen Post
  Copenhagen District Court determined that two Tunisian men charged with planning to murder Muhammad cartoonist Kurt Westergaard, ought to remain in custody, citing that the two are «a danger to national security.» The court’s decision upheld their imprisonment until August 12th, and was based on evidence presented by the national intelligence agency, showing that it was «likely» that the two were guilty of conspiracy to kill Westergaard.

• Five acquitted over Madrid train bombings

  12 August 2008, by News Agencies
  A Spanish court overturned the convictions of four people who had been found guilty in connection with the 2005 Madrid bombings. The court overturned a ruling from last year, which found three guilty of being members of an Islamist cell that carried out the attacks. All four of the men were among 21 people convicted in 2007, of being inspired by – but not directed by, Al Qaeda.

• Muslims will be searched by sniffer dogs despite objections, say police

  6 August 2008
  Questions have been raised over using sniffer dogs to search Muslim passengers at train stations following complaints that it is against their religion. Some Muslims had raised objections over being searched by the explosive-detecting animals, but British Transport Police have said they will continue to use the specially trained animals. The saliva of dogs, and not dogs per se, is considered to be unclean in Islam.

• Muslim revert to face terror trial

  5 August 2008, by The Muslim Weekly
  A Muslim revert is to go on trial accused of preparing an act of terrorism in Rotherham. Nicholas Roddis, 22, of Reedham Drive, Bramley, will go on trial at Leeds Crown Court. He faces 13 charges, including one of engaging in preparation of an act of terrorism between April 12 last year and July 12 last year. There are also 11 counts of possessing an article for a terrorist purpose, on July 11 2007.

• ‘Young can become addicted to extremism’

  4 August 2008, by The Muslim Weekly
  Islamic extremism should be regarded as a potential addiction for vulnerable young people in the same way as alcohol, drugs or gambling, according to Scotland’s counter-terrorism co-ordinator. Allan Burnett wants to introduce rehabilitative measures similar to addiction support to prevent youngsters from becoming radicalised by fundamentalists, instead of sending them to prison. Speaking on the eve of the first anniversary of the Glasgow airport attack, Mr Burnett told The Herald that he wants to develop restorative justice and early intervention initiatives for young people as part of the strategy to stop future attacks.

• Alleged al-Qaeda-linked Islamists arrested

  29 July 2008, by News Agencies
  Spanish police broke up a cell of suspected Islamic militants, and arrested four people accused of fundraising for terrorist activities. The men, all of Algerian origin, were arrested in the southern province of Huelva and the Basque region in the north. Authorities said that the cell had been under investigation since 2005, and was directly linked to Al Qaeda.

• Muslim summit in Rome looks at ways to fight radicalism

  28 July 2008, by Adnkronos
  Members of Italy’s Muslim community met on Friday to find new ways to combat extremism. The meeting, held in Rome’s main mosque, was the first of its kind to be organized by the Association of Muslim Intellectuals. "We placed attention on the need to implement strategies to prevent Islamic radicalism and foster initiatives that aim to create a more accurate image of Islam," said in a statement by the group.

• Palestinian hijacker freed in Rome

  16 July 2008, by News Agencies
  One of the hijackers of the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro has been released, after serving more than two decades in an Italian jail. Ibrahim Fatayer Abdelatif was one of a group of Palestinian militants who hijacked the ship in 1985. Authorities have ordered Ibrahim to leave Italy, though his lawyer says that he has nowhere to go. Although Ibrahim has officially been expelled from Italy, he cannot leave until he finds another country that will accept him.

• Abu Qatada released from prison

  2 July 2008, by The Muslim Weekly
  The radical Abu Qatada has variously been described as a «truly dangerous individual» and a «key UK figure» in al-Qaida-related activity by those in anti-terrorist circles who have studied his work and words. Qatada, who was released from prison last night on strict bail conditions including a 22-hour curfew, became one of the UK’s most wanted men in December 2001, when he went on the run on the eve of government moves to introduce new anti-terror laws allowing suspects to be detained without charge or trial.

• ’Bomb plot’ wife gave false name

  2 July 2008, by BBC
  A suspected airline bomb plotter’s wife has told a jury she gave police a false name and lied to protect her fugitive husband’s identity. Zora Siddique said she had initially given her cousin’s name to officers and had failed to reveal Mohammed Gulzar’s identity because he was a wanted man. Prosecutors allege that Mr Gulzar and others plotted to smuggle liquid bombs disguised as drinks on to planes.

• Counter terrorism chief praises Scottish approach

  2 July 2008, by The Muslim Weekly
  SNP Home Affairs spokesperson, Pete Wishart MP, has welcomed comments by the Director-General of the Office for Security and Counter Terrorism praising Scotland’s community cohesion and ability to prevent young people becoming radicalised and joining terror groups. In an interview, Charles Farr, said: «I think the nature of communities in Scotland is discernibly different from the nature of communities south of the border. You have an ability to reach in and develop a strategy of this kind.»

• Muslims may not have to undergo sniffer dog checks in UK

  2 July 2008, by Times of India
  Muslim passengers may not be touched by sniffer dogs of the British Transport Police after complaints that the practice is against Islam. According to the religion, dogs are deemed to be spiritually «unclean». A Transport Department report has raised the prospect that animals should only touch passengers’ luggage because it is considered «more acceptable», the Daily Express reported.

• Crown presents strong e-mail evidence in Khawaja case

  2 July 2008, by News Agencies
  The strongest evidence in the case of the first man charged under Canada’s antiterrorism act was revealed in court – emails he wrote over the course of a year prior to his arrest. Mohammad Mowin Khawaja, 29, wrote messages to conspirators in Britain referring to detonation devices, routing recruits to a house in Pakistan, as well as ways to send money and night-vision goggles to insurgents in Afghanistan.

• More money invested to tackle radicalisation

  1 July 2008, by The Muslim Weekly
  New guidance to help and support local authorities, schools, community groups and the police in tackling violent extremism and prevent radicalisation in communities was launched on Tuesday by the government. Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, Communities Secretary Hazel Blears and Children, Schools and Families Secretary Ed Balls rolled out their counter terrorism strategy which hopes to prevent people getting involved with violent extremism.

• Terror law to allow 42-day detention opposed by MPs

  1 July 2008, by The Muslim Weekly
  The government is unveiling a major new package of a counter-terrorism laws, a plan that gives the right to detain terrorist suspects for upto 42 days without charge. Prime Minister Gordon Brown is understood to have outlined concessions and appealed to MPs not to inflict further damage on the Government after a series of election disasters and policy U-turns. Under long-awaited changes to the Counter-Terrorism Bill, Home Secretary Miss Smith revealed the power to detain suspects without charge would only be used in the face of a «grave, exceptional terrorist threat» to Britain.

• UK terror suspect says bomb plans were stunt

  1 July 2008, by The Muslim Weekly
  A man has denied leading a plot to cause mass murder by blowing planes out of the sky with the excuse that he had meant instead to explode small devices inside the Houses of Parliament as part of a publicity stunt. Abdulla Ahmed Ali, 27, said that suicide videos which the prosecution claims prove a plot to bomb seven planes flying to North America were in fact made as part of a «propaganda» documentary planned for release after the small explosions in Westminster.

• London bombs home-made from pharmacy ingredients

  1 July 2008, by The Muslim Weekly
  Explosives found by detectives investigating the London bombings were home-made using ingredients that can be found in high street chemists. The highly volatile explosive - acetone peroxide - has been discovered in a house in Leeds thought to have been used as a bomb-making factory. The discovery has raised fears of other British fanatics making their own explosives and following the example of the London suicide bombers.

• Islamic fanatics are openly using the internet to recruit children in Britain, says Civitas

  1 July 2008, by Mail on Sunday
  Islamic extremists in Britain are openly trying to recruit children via the internet, a report warns.

• Report: Berlin fears German being groomed as suicide bomber

  1 July 2008, by Earth Times
  Police fear that a convert, Eric B, 20, is being groomed by Jihadists to become the first German suicide bomber, according to the news magazine Der Spiegel on Saturday. German police had lost track of B several weeks ago in the wilds in or near Afghanistan, where he was in training with Islamic Jihad Union (IJU), an Uzbek-origin terrorist group regarded as just as threatening as Arab-based al-Qaeda.

• Denmark: Three Muslims attacked after embassy bombing in Pakistan

  30 June 2008, by 24 Timer
  Former spokesperson of the Islamic Faith Society (ISF) Kasem Said Ahmed was attacked on his way to work, shortly after the attack on the Danish embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan was announced in the Danish media. The attack occurred in Copenhagen, and Ahmed said he was punched in the face after being asked if he was an imam.

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