From The Daily Mail:
- Muni Farooqi told undercover police officers they could become ‘martyrs’ for the jihad cause
- Muslim convert and estate agent Matthew Newton was beside Farooqi in the dock
By Jaya Narain
Last updated at 1:34 PM on 10th September 2011
A former Taliban fighter who ran a market stall as a recruitment centre for extremists to wage war on British troops was jailed for life yesterday.
Pakistani-born British citizen Munir Farooqi was at the centre of a plot to persuade vulnerable young men to ‘fight, kill and die’ in a jihad, or holy war, in Afghanistan.
The 54-year-old used extremist literature and films to convert an estate agent, a former British soldier and members of a local criminal gang to Islam.
Convicted: Munir Farooqi, left, was found guilty of soliciting multiple murder and a series of terrorism offences, while Matthew Newton, who Farooqi recruited, was convicted of preparing acts of terrorism and distributing terrorist publications
The 54-year-old used extremist literature and films to convert an estate agent, a former British soldier and members of a local criminal gang to Islam.
Farooqi and two other men were captured two years ago after a pair of undercover anti-terrorism police officers infiltrated his group. He bragged to them about fighting with the Taliban, and told them they could become ‘martyrs’.
Yesterday, Farooqi received four life sentences at Manchester Crown Court. He was told he must serve a minimum of nine years before he can be considered for parole.
Recruiting ground: Farooqi used Longsight Market in Manchester to sell fanatical Islamic manuals, books and DVDs and target young British men
Judge Richard Henriques told him: ‘As a resident of this country you owe allegiance to the Crown. That appears to have escaped your attention.’
The court heard Farooqi had been born in Pakistan, and came to England with his family when he was five.
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He became an active supporter of the Taliban, and went to Afghanistan in the wake of 9/11, but was captured by authorities there and jailed from November 2001 to May 2002.
When police raided Farooqi’s terraced home in Longsight, Manchester, they found a ‘production centre for propaganda’, including 50,000 items of extremist literature and up to 5,000 DVDs.
He was convicted of three charges of soliciting murder, preparing for acts of terrorism and distributing terrorist publications.
Estate agent Matthew Newton, 29, was convicted of preparing acts of terrorism and distributing terrorist publications, and jailed for six years.
Former shop assistant Israr Malik, 22, was convicted of engaging in conduct in preparation for acts of terrorism and two counts of soliciting to murder, and received an indeterminate sentence. He must serve five years before being considered for parole.
There was no evidence that anyone from the UK had travelled abroad to fight allied forces as a result of the men’s actions.
If they still believe in Islam there is no such thing as a former jihadists, they will remain jihadist until they covert or die.
9 years in prison will allow him to revert more Muslims to the Jihadi cause. And the line, “As a resident of this country you owe allegiance to the Crown. That appears to have escaped your attention.” Why doesn’t somebody use that to deal with Choudry?
“As a resident of this country you owe allegiance to the Crown.
What????!!!!
If that was ever applied, the entire Muslim population of the UK would have to leave.
” Why doesn’t somebody use that to deal with Choudry?
Choudary is fine by me. He is not a Taqqiya agent unlike the so-called moderate muslims. He is the only one that has been telling the truth about Islam for years.
Choudary has done sterling work for our cause, and if there was a medal that could be awarded to him without ruining his work, he should get it.
Yes DP111, he’s an honest broker bent on the destruction of western civilization. At what point do the Brits say “enough” of your abuse of free speech and ship him off to France on a row boat across the Chanel while his diatribes fade in the wind.
The reason is as soon as someone questions Choudry the State pounces on them for hate or some other such nonsense while he continues to spout hate himself.
Time for the UK to dispose of all hate crime laws and let the population sort things out by having an honest debate, and then you might finally see some real community action taking place whereby the anti-Western activities by Islamists will finally be dealt with through a marginalization by UK citizens who have so far been held back under the threat of “hate crimes.”
Bloody bullshit.