North London Central Mosque

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North London Central Mosque.

North London Central Mosque in Finsbury Park, London, was built in 1990 to serve the large Muslim population in the area.

1 Radical Islamism
- 1.1 Ricin
- 1.2 Beslan school hostage crisis
2 Change of leadership
3 See also
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Radical Islamism

The mosque became associated with radical Islamism in the early 2000s, in particular related to its association with Abu Hamza al-Masri. The Charity Commission expressed concerns about the management of the mosque, and its use for political activities.

Al Qaeda terrorists, including "shoebomber" Richard Reid and Zacarias Moussaoui, both attended Finsbury Park mosque.^[1]

[edit] Ricin

On January 20, 2003 the mosque was raided by the Metropolitan Police, as part of the investigation into the alleged discovery of ricin in Wood Green. A number of men who were living at the mosque were arrested.[1]

On February 4, 2003, Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Masri was removed from his position as an agent of the mosque.

[edit] Beslan school hostage crisis

On October 3, 2004, The Observer revealed that 46-year-old Kamel Rabat Bouralha attended the mosque. Bouralha, with UK citizens Osman Larussi and Yacine Benalia, were loyal to Chechen warlord Shamil Basayev. Basayev has boasted of training the men who took control of the school in Beslan, Russia and wired it with explosives. Investigators believe that the three men, all Algerian-born, travelled to Chechnya from London to take part in fighting there in 2001. Like Bouralha, they are believed to have attended Finsbury Park mosque and to have joined the network of groups loyal to Basayev on arrival in Chechnya.

[edit] Change of leadership

After the 2003 raid, the mosque was reclaimed by mainstream Muslims, who installed a new board of trustees and imam. The mosque now offers courses open to the general public, and weekly attendance has tripled and the Mosque continues to exert a very powerful attraction for Muslim refugees from North African countries who visit numerous cafes and shops on Blackstock Road. Formerly called the Finsbury Park Mosque, since February 2005 the mosque has been renamed to the North London Central Mosque.