12./13./14.12.2011
Last week, Ahmed Faraz, an Islamic bookshop owner an alleged Muslim radical from Birmingham, was sentenced to three years in prison for running a business publishing extremist texts and DVDs and distributing material that ‘encouraged terrorism’ (Daily Mail). Among the radical material distributed by Faraz was an Al Qaeda training manual and bomb-making instructions. As the Telegraph reports, it is thought that the material produced and distributed by Faraz found its way to the hands of almost every major terrorist in Britain, including the 7/7 bomber Mohammed Siddique Khan.
During trial, Faraz, an Islamic studies graduate, had claimed that the material was for academic research. However, the jurors at Kingston Crown Court found him guilty and convicted him of 11 of 15 counts against him. Judge Justice Calvert-Smith said publishing the books in the way there were was highly irresponsible, as they were published ‘to appeal to young people who had recently converted to Islam or became more religiously inclined as they got older’. Furthermore, he added the books ‘glorified terrorism. They implied approving of such attacks as 9/11 or 7/7’ (BBC).
