Finsbury Park Mosque

Finsbury Park Mosque
Coordinates: 51°33′49″N 0°06′21″W / 51.5636°N 0.1057°W / 51.5636; -0.1057Coordinates: 51°33′49″N 0°06′21″W / 51.5636°N 0.1057°W / 51.5636; -0.1057
Location Finsbury Park, London
 United Kingdom
Branch/tradition Sunni
Architectural information
Minaret(s) 1
Website: finsburyparkmosque.org
The interior of the dome inside the North London Central Mosque

The Finsbury Park Mosque is a mosque located in Finsbury Park, London, London Borough of Islington, England.

The mosque was affected by leadership disputes in the 1990s, allowing extremist Islamist preachers (many of whom were refugees from the Algerian Civil War) to take it over. In 1996 they installed Abu Hamza al-Masri as imam of the mosque, which subsequently developed a reputation as a centre of radical Islamism in London.[1]

In 2014, HSBC bank closed North London Central Mosque's bank account.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8] Several reliable sources report that HSBC closed it because it donated some amount of money to the State of Palestine during the 2014 Israel–Gaza war.[9][10][11]

History and location

The main building was opened in 1994 in a ceremony attended by Prince Charles. The mosque is located opposite Finsbury Park station, close to Arsenal Football Club's Emirates Stadium, in the London Borough of Islington.[12]

Former terrorism links

Al Qaeda operatives including "shoebomber" Richard Reid and Zacarias Moussaoui attended the mosque.[13] In 2002, The Guardian reported that weapons training had taken place inside the building.[14]

Wood Green ricin plot

In 2003, over one hundred armed police raided the building as part of the investigation into the alleged Wood Green ricin plot.[15] Abu Hamza al-Masri was eventually jailed for seven years in 2006 after being convicted of inciting murder and race hate.[16] Later, he was deported to the United States to face justice for terrorism charges after a ten-year battle in the British courts based on his "indefinite leave to remain in the UK", which was granted to him by the previous Conservative government. He was eventually sentenced to life in prison.[17]

Beslan Siege

Individuals involved in the Beslan Siege were linked to the mosque.[18]

Change of leadership

Following the 2003 raid, the mosque was reclaimed by those including representatives of the Muslim Association of Britain, who installed a new board of trustees and imam.[19] Mohammed Kozbar is currently the chair of the mosque. The mosque now offers courses open to the general public. It is open for public visits, awareness weeks and community open days.[20]

See also

References

  1. ↑ BBC News, (15 November 2007). "Abu Hamza could face extradition". British Broadcast Corporation.
  2. ↑ Dominic Laurie (July 30, 2014). "HSBC closes some Muslim groups' accounts". BBC. Archived from the original on August 10, 2015.
  3. ↑ Robinson, Wills (30 July 2014). "Race row as HSBC accused of Islamaphobia after telling high profile Muslim groups it will close down accounts". Daily Mail (London).
  4. ↑ Siddique, Haroon. "HSBC shuts accounts of Muslim organisations, including Finsbury Park mosque". The Guardian.
  5. ↑ "HSBC closes three Muslim organisations' accounts". BBC News.
  6. ↑ "HSBC angers Muslim leaders by closing account of Finsbury Park Mosque". The Evening Standard.
  7. ↑ "HSBC closes bank accounts belonging to Muslim clients in the UK". The Independent (London).
  8. ↑ "Muslim bank accounts closed by HSBC in wake of 'money laundering' fine". The Daily Telegraph (London). 30 July 2014.
  9. ↑ "HSBC terminates Gaza-linked Islamic charity’s bank account and others".
  10. ↑ Fraser, Giles. "HSBC: the bank that likes to say no to Muslim accounts". The Guardian.
  11. ↑ "UK Muslim Brotherhood Leader Says HSBC Closes His Bank Accounts; Claims Closures Part Of Action Against Palestinian Activists". The Global Muslim Brotherhood Daily Watch.
  12. ↑ North London Central Mosque Trust - About us
  13. ↑ Neville Dean and Nick Allen, PA (7 February 2006). "Finsbury Park mosque's terrorist roll call". London: The Independent.
  14. ↑ Burke, Jason (17 February 2002). "AK-47 training held at London mosque". The Guardian (London). Retrieved 20 May 2010.
  15. ↑ Global Politician - Finsbury Park: Inside the British Jihad
  16. ↑ "Abu Hamza jailed for seven years". BBC News. 7 February 2006. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
  17. ↑ Bucktin, Christopher (May 19, 2014). "Hook-handed terrorist Abu Hamza al-Masri is GUILTY and faces 100 years in jail". Daily Mirror.
  18. ↑ The Guardian
  19. ↑ "The battle for the mosque". BBC News. 7 February 2006. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
  20. ↑ North London Central Mosque Trust - Home

Notes

External links

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