Abu Izzadeen

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A photograph of Abu Izzadeen, heckling Home Secretary John Reid on 20 September 2006.
A photograph of Abu Izzadeen, heckling Home Secretary John Reid on 20 September 2006.

Abu Izzadeen (Arabic: ابو عز الدين‎, Abū ‘Izz ad-Dīn), born as Trevor Brooks (18 April 1976), is a spokesman for Al Ghurabaa, a Muslim organization banned under the Terrorism Act 2006 for the glorification of terrorism, that operated in the United Kingdom.[1] Abu Izzadeen was arrested because of these films placed on an internet site. The police also arrested five others during the same raid. He was convicted on charges of terrorist fund-raising and inciting terrorism overseas on 17th April 2008.[2]

Contents

[edit] Personal background

Abu Izzadeen is a british man born in Hackney, East London to a family originally from Jamaica. Brooks converted to Islam a day before he turned 18, on the 17 April 1994, changing his name to Omar, but preferring to be called Abu Izadeen. He is fluent in Arabic.[3][4]

He trained and once worked as an electrician. He and his Arab-born wife Mokhtaria were married in 1998; they have three children.[4][5][6]

In 2006, he placed a personal advertisement on an Islamic matrimonial website, seeking to marry up to three more wives in order to father more than nine children. Polygamy is illegal in the UK. Izzadeen did not respond to questions from the Evening Standard about the ad and it has since been removed.[5]

[edit] Political activities

Abu Izzadeen met Omar Bakri Muhammed and Abu Hamza al-Masri at Finsbury Park Mosque in the 1990s; this is when he is thought to have been radicalized.[5]

He visited Pakistan in 2001, before the September 11 attacks, as part of Al-Muhajiroun; he claims he went there to give a series of lectures. He also claimed to have attended terror training camps in Afghanistan.[4][5]

He described the 7/7 suicide bombers in London as "completely praiseworthy".[7]

On the eve of the anniversary of the 7/7 attacks in London, he was filmed preaching to a group of Muslims in Birmingham (UK) mocking and laughing at the victims of 9/11 and threatening further terror attacks in the UK.[8]

He has openly stated that he wishes to die as a suicide bomber.[9]

On 20 September 2006, Abu Izadeen and Anjem Choudary disrupted Home Secretary John Reid's first public meeting with Muslims since his appointment. He called Reid an "enemy" of Islam.[10]. John Humphrys interviewed Izzadeen on the 22 September 2006 edition of BBC Radio 4's Today programme. In a heated discussion Abu Izadeen stated that his aim was for the UK to become an Islamic state and that this should be achieved without following the democratic process.[11]

In early February 2007, ITV broadcast a video made in the summer of 2004 that was discovered on a password-protected website by Glen Jenvey. In the video Abu Izadeen told his audience in Regents Park Mosque, to murder British and American Muslim soldiers:

"Whoever allies himself with the Kaffirs against the believers - he is one of them. So those so-called enemies to Allah who join the British Government - 'cos remember the British Government, my dear Muslim brothers, are crusaders... crusaders come to kill and rape Muslims. Whoever joins them - he who joins the British Army, the American Army, he is a mortal kaffir and his only hukum (punishment) is for his head to be removed. Indeed, whoever changes his deen (religious way of life); kill him."[12][13]

Glen Jenvey found the tape soon after it was recorded, handed it to the police at New Scotland Yard but it was not acted upon, just like in the Abu Hamza case. Glen Jenvey was behind the evidence which led to the arrest of Abu Hamza.

[edit] Arrests

[edit] February 2007

British police arrested Abu Izadeen on charges of inciting terrorism on 2007-02-08. A spokesman for Scotland Yard said the arrest is related to an "on-going inquiry," involving a speech Abu Izadeen gave in the West Midlands area in 2006, which predates the 20 September 2006 incident.[14][15] the video was downloaded by Glen Jenvey

[edit] April 2007

He was arrested again in a pre-dawn police raid on 2007-04-24 under the Terrorism Act 2000 "in connection with inciting others to commit acts of terrorism overseas and terrorist fundraising". [16] The police raid came after information was past via www.glen-jenvey.com website released a video to a TV network. The video was uncovered by Glen Jenvey

[edit] April 2008

On 2008-04-17 Izzadeen was among six men convicted at Kingston Crown Court of supporting terrorism, while the jury failed to reach a verdict on a third charge of encouraging terrorism.[17]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Terror treason charge considered BBC News
  2. ^ Six guilty of terrorism support
  3. ^ debate on Newsnight about Abu Izzadeen and extremism Youtube
  4. ^ a b c Al Shafey, Mohammed. "The UK's New Face of Radicalism", Asharq Alawsat, May 9, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-02-08. 
  5. ^ a b c d "Wanted: three more wives for Islamist heckler", The Daily Mail, September 26, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-02-09. 
  6. ^ "The electrician who turned into a radical", The Telegraph, February 9, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-02-09. 
  7. ^ Reborn extremist sect had key role in London protest Guardian Unlimited
  8. ^ Smug British Terrorist mocks victims of 9/11, 7/7, etc Youtube
  9. ^ Inside the sect that loves terror Times Online
  10. ^ Reid heckled during Muslim speech BBC News
  11. ^ BBC interview with Abu Izzadeen BBC Radio 4
  12. ^ "Extremist video uncovered", ITV News, February 5, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-02-08. 
  13. ^ Reilly, Tom. "UK army Muslims 'must die'", The Sun, February 6, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-02-08. 
  14. ^ Reid Heckler Arrested Sky News
  15. ^ UK police arrest outspoken Muslim (HTML). CNN World. Cable News Network (2007). Retrieved on 2007-02-08.
  16. ^ http://uk.news.yahoo.com/afp/20070424/tuk-britain-attacks-arrests-a7ad41d_1.html
  17. ^ "Six guilty of terrorism support", BBC, 2008-04-17.