MCB Writes to Lord Carlile and Operation Pathway
Sunday, July 19, 2009
~~~
24 April 2009
The MCB has written to Lord Carlile, the independent reviewer of counter terrorism legislation, commending his initiative to launch an inquiry into "Operation Pathway". The resentment and anger caused by this particular case of 12 innocent men's detention and trial by media should not be underestimated, but the MCB's is particularly concerned that this is not an isolated case and incidents damaging to community relations are being repeated, with the lessons not being learned.
"While the media coverage may bring kudos in high circles, it is Muslims in Britain who bear the consequences. It is they who are emerging as the "suspect community" and who are viewed with suspicion by their neighbours. The reports are exploited by the extreme right wing and fascists. Each time there are tabloid headlines demonising Muslims, verbal and physical attacks follow. There is a real human price being paid", noted Dr Bari, MCB Secretary General in the letter.
In the letter, the MCB also urges Lord Carlile to critique the "intelligence gathering" aspects of counter-terrorism. Operation Pathway, it is believed, involved members of the public who had "undergone a crash course in surveillance techniques" (Sunday Express, 19th April 2009). Affiliates of the MCB have confirmed the climate of snooping. Are not the authorities mindful of the breakdown of trust and the impact on matters of ordinary civil policing? The MCB also hopes that his inquiry would analyse the flawed nature of recent anti-terrorism legislation, such as the reduction in the burden of proof and the provision for blanket stop and search powers.
Much rests on Lord Carlile to bring back our law enforcement agencies back into line, restore public confidence as a matter of urgency, and ensure that the lessons are being taken on board.
[Ends]
The Muslim Council of Britain is an umbrella body of some 500 mosques, charities and schools. For further information please contact:
The Muslim Council of Britain
PO Box 57330
London E1 2WJ
Tel: 0845 26 26 786
Fax: 0207 247 7079
media@mcb.org.uk
Please read the full text of the letter sent to Lord Carlile from the following link provided:
http://www.mcb.org.uk/uploads/LetterToLordCarlile.PDF
posted by Muhammad Maalik La'eeq @ Sunday, July 19, 2009
Channel 4 News : Interview with released terror suspect
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Interview with released terror suspect
July 19, 2009
Arrested by armed officers on suspicion of terrorism, then held for three months in a high-security jail, a Pakistani student rounded up in April as part of an alleged terror plot has spoken exclusively to Channel 4 News about his ordeal.
Janus Khan was one of 12 students arrested in a police swoop suddenly brought forward after former anti-terrorism chief Bob Quick was photographed in Downing Street with documents revealing details of the operation.
No charges have been brought, and Janus Khan was told on Friday that he was no longer considered a threat to national security.
But he is still being made to wear an electronic tag and is facing deportation.
[video link]
July 19, 2009
Arrested by armed officers on suspicion of terrorism, then held for three months in a high-security jail, a Pakistani student rounded up in April as part of an alleged terror plot has spoken exclusively to Channel 4 News about his ordeal.
Janus Khan was one of 12 students arrested in a police swoop suddenly brought forward after former anti-terrorism chief Bob Quick was photographed in Downing Street with documents revealing details of the operation.
No charges have been brought, and Janus Khan was told on Friday that he was no longer considered a threat to national security.
But he is still being made to wear an electronic tag and is facing deportation.
[video link]
Independent : Pakistani students launch legal action over arrests
Sunday, July 19, 2009
Pakistani students launch legal action over arrests
By Emily Dugan | July 19, 2009
Janas Khan, one of two Pakistani students released from prison yesterday months after terrorism charges against them were dropped, has told The Independent on Sunday he was "shocked and angry" at his treatment by the UK Government. Lawyers acting for the remaining seven Pakistani students still held in prison have also announced they will launch a legal challenge against the Government this week.
The 26-year-old business student began to cry as he said: "Growing up we heard that the UK was the one place that respected human rights and justice, which is why I wanted to study here. I'm shocked and angry. I am innocent and I still can't believe I was arrested on no evidence."
Sultan Sher was also released from prison yesterday. The two were among 12 students who were arrested in April after the UK's most senior counterterrorism officer was photographed walking into Downing Street carrying highly sensitive documents revealing details of the operation. The details were visible, and a premature police operation against an alleged al-Qa'ida plot ensued. The officer responsible, Scotland Yard's Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick, resigned.
Criminal charges against all the students were dropped in May because of insufficient evidence, but they have been kept locked in high-security prisons under immigration laws. "They never told us what it was that we were supposed to have done," said Mr Khan. His studies were due to finish in September, but the limitations of his parole conditions means it will be impossible to travel from Manchester to meet his tutors in Liverpool.
Legal challenges for the remaining students will now add to the authorities' embarrassment following the bungled terror case. Two lawsuits will contest the legality of the Government's use of secret evidence in their continued imprisonment as well as the lawfulness of the initial arrest.
By Emily Dugan | July 19, 2009
Janas Khan, one of two Pakistani students released from prison yesterday months after terrorism charges against them were dropped, has told The Independent on Sunday he was "shocked and angry" at his treatment by the UK Government. Lawyers acting for the remaining seven Pakistani students still held in prison have also announced they will launch a legal challenge against the Government this week.
The 26-year-old business student began to cry as he said: "Growing up we heard that the UK was the one place that respected human rights and justice, which is why I wanted to study here. I'm shocked and angry. I am innocent and I still can't believe I was arrested on no evidence."
Sultan Sher was also released from prison yesterday. The two were among 12 students who were arrested in April after the UK's most senior counterterrorism officer was photographed walking into Downing Street carrying highly sensitive documents revealing details of the operation. The details were visible, and a premature police operation against an alleged al-Qa'ida plot ensued. The officer responsible, Scotland Yard's Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick, resigned.
Criminal charges against all the students were dropped in May because of insufficient evidence, but they have been kept locked in high-security prisons under immigration laws. "They never told us what it was that we were supposed to have done," said Mr Khan. His studies were due to finish in September, but the limitations of his parole conditions means it will be impossible to travel from Manchester to meet his tutors in Liverpool.
Legal challenges for the remaining students will now add to the authorities' embarrassment following the bungled terror case. Two lawsuits will contest the legality of the Government's use of secret evidence in their continued imprisonment as well as the lawfulness of the initial arrest.
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Times : Terrorist threat lowest since 9/11
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Terrorist threat lowest since 9/11
David Leppard | The Sunday Times | July 19, 2009
THE threat of an Al-Qaeda attack on Britain is lower than at any time since before the 9/11 attacks, MI5 has privately concluded.
Well-placed officials said there had been discussions in MI5 over the past month about whether to reduce the terrorist threat level from “severe” – where an attack is deemed highly likely – to “substantial”, where it is “a strong possibility”.
The assessment follows Operation Pathway, one of MI5’s biggest counterterrorist campaigns. It led to the arrest of 11 Pakistani men in April.
The men were released without charge. When no explosives or weapons were found, critics said the operation revealed the absence of any terrorist plot against the UK.
Although MI5 declined to comment, evidence of the perceived lower risk came last week when the US navy moored a warship, the Halyburton, in London.
“The Americans wouldn’t dream of [it] if the threat of an attack was high,” a security official said.
David Leppard | The Sunday Times | July 19, 2009
THE threat of an Al-Qaeda attack on Britain is lower than at any time since before the 9/11 attacks, MI5 has privately concluded.
Well-placed officials said there had been discussions in MI5 over the past month about whether to reduce the terrorist threat level from “severe” – where an attack is deemed highly likely – to “substantial”, where it is “a strong possibility”.
The assessment follows Operation Pathway, one of MI5’s biggest counterterrorist campaigns. It led to the arrest of 11 Pakistani men in April.
The men were released without charge. When no explosives or weapons were found, critics said the operation revealed the absence of any terrorist plot against the UK.
Although MI5 declined to comment, evidence of the perceived lower risk came last week when the US navy moored a warship, the Halyburton, in London.
“The Americans wouldn’t dream of [it] if the threat of an attack was high,” a security official said.
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LittleAbout : Britain drops deportation orders for Pak students
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Britain drops deportation orders for Pak students
July 18, 2009
London, July 18 - ANI: Britain has withdrawn deportation orders on two of the nine Pakistani students who were detained on national security grounds earlier this year.
Both students, Sultan Sher and Janas Khan belong to the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) in Pakistan and were arrested from Leeds and Milton Keynes respectively.
The students are expected to be released once authorities complete the legal formalities, The Nation reports.
Students attorney said that the officials would now go through the usual immigration process, and if their visas are found legal and valid, they will be allowed to continue their study in Britain.
It may be noted that 12 students were arrested in simultaneous raids across Britain in April. Ten out of the 12 taken into custody were Pakistanis, who had came to Britain on students visa.
However, after three weeks of intense interrogation all charges against the students were dropped due to lack of evidence. They were then handed over to the UK Borders Agency for deportation.
Meanwhile, two students Abdul Wahab Khan and Shoaib Khan, Amjad Malik have applied for further bail before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission.
Their bail plea would be heard on July 27. - ANI
July 18, 2009
London, July 18 - ANI: Britain has withdrawn deportation orders on two of the nine Pakistani students who were detained on national security grounds earlier this year.
Both students, Sultan Sher and Janas Khan belong to the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) in Pakistan and were arrested from Leeds and Milton Keynes respectively.
The students are expected to be released once authorities complete the legal formalities, The Nation reports.
Students attorney said that the officials would now go through the usual immigration process, and if their visas are found legal and valid, they will be allowed to continue their study in Britain.
It may be noted that 12 students were arrested in simultaneous raids across Britain in April. Ten out of the 12 taken into custody were Pakistanis, who had came to Britain on students visa.
However, after three weeks of intense interrogation all charges against the students were dropped due to lack of evidence. They were then handed over to the UK Borders Agency for deportation.
Meanwhile, two students Abdul Wahab Khan and Shoaib Khan, Amjad Malik have applied for further bail before the Special Immigration Appeals Commission.
Their bail plea would be heard on July 27. - ANI
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The Herald : ‘Terror plot’ pair to go free as MP calls police operation a catalogue of errors
Friday, July 17, 2009
‘Terror plot’ pair to go free as MP calls police operation a catalogue of errors
July 17, 2009
Two Pakistani students accused of being part of an alleged terror plot are to be released from custody.
Sultan Sher and Janus Khan were among 12 men held during raids in the north west of England in April.
The pair, who are in their mid 20s, were detained as the Home Office sought to deport them, claiming they posed a threat to national security.
But that allegation was dropped yesterday, a solicitor for one of the men said.
Mohammed Ayub said the pair would be released subject to conditions, including wearing an electronic tag and reporting to police.
Home Office officials said the government would now seek to deport them for visa irregularities.
A Home Office spokesman said: "These individuals no longer meet the required criteria for detention on the grounds of national security.
"They are currently detained pending removal on immigration grounds, but legally we cannot hold them indefinitely.
"We are therefore putting in place suitable and robust measures to ensure we are fully aware of their whereabouts as we progress their cases for removal."
Mr Ayub said the terror allegations against his client were "groundless" and he would oppose the continuing attempts to deport him.
He said: "It beggars belief that the Secretary of State could behave like this.
"Why was my client held in custody for all this time?"
"I wish to state my client is entitled to an unreserved apology and no further action should be taken against him."
Of the remaining men held during the raid, one has joint British and Pakistani citizenship and has been released.
Another has returned to Pakistan voluntarily and an Afghan man is in custody pending deportation for being in the UK illegally.
The other seven face deportation on the grounds of national security. Their case returns to court on July 27.
Sher, living in Manchester, and Khan, living in Liverpool, were arrested on April 18 as part of Operation Pathway.
The operation was launched early after Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick of Metropolitan Police was photographed going in to Downing Street with a document giving details of the police plan. Mr Quick subsequently resigned.
Keith Vaz, chairman of the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee, called for Home Secretary Alan Johnson to make an urgent statement over the matter.
He said: "The release of two Pakistani students who were alleged to have been part of terrorist activity begs a number of questions as to why they were detained in the first place.
"There appears to have been a catalogue of errors.
"It is important that the Home Secretary makes a statement as a matter of urgency to clarify exactly what happened."
© All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
July 17, 2009
Two Pakistani students accused of being part of an alleged terror plot are to be released from custody.
Sultan Sher and Janus Khan were among 12 men held during raids in the north west of England in April.
The pair, who are in their mid 20s, were detained as the Home Office sought to deport them, claiming they posed a threat to national security.
But that allegation was dropped yesterday, a solicitor for one of the men said.
Mohammed Ayub said the pair would be released subject to conditions, including wearing an electronic tag and reporting to police.
Home Office officials said the government would now seek to deport them for visa irregularities.
A Home Office spokesman said: "These individuals no longer meet the required criteria for detention on the grounds of national security.
"They are currently detained pending removal on immigration grounds, but legally we cannot hold them indefinitely.
"We are therefore putting in place suitable and robust measures to ensure we are fully aware of their whereabouts as we progress their cases for removal."
Mr Ayub said the terror allegations against his client were "groundless" and he would oppose the continuing attempts to deport him.
He said: "It beggars belief that the Secretary of State could behave like this.
"Why was my client held in custody for all this time?"
"I wish to state my client is entitled to an unreserved apology and no further action should be taken against him."
Of the remaining men held during the raid, one has joint British and Pakistani citizenship and has been released.
Another has returned to Pakistan voluntarily and an Afghan man is in custody pending deportation for being in the UK illegally.
The other seven face deportation on the grounds of national security. Their case returns to court on July 27.
Sher, living in Manchester, and Khan, living in Liverpool, were arrested on April 18 as part of Operation Pathway.
The operation was launched early after Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick of Metropolitan Police was photographed going in to Downing Street with a document giving details of the police plan. Mr Quick subsequently resigned.
Keith Vaz, chairman of the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee, called for Home Secretary Alan Johnson to make an urgent statement over the matter.
He said: "The release of two Pakistani students who were alleged to have been part of terrorist activity begs a number of questions as to why they were detained in the first place.
"There appears to have been a catalogue of errors.
"It is important that the Home Secretary makes a statement as a matter of urgency to clarify exactly what happened."
© All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
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APP : British authorities withdraw deportation orders on Pak students
Friday, July 17, 2009
British authorities withdraw deportation orders on Pak students
July 17, 2009
LONDON, July 17 (APP)-The British authorities have decided to withdraw deportation orders on two of the nine Pakistani students detained on national security grounds. The students Sultan Sher and Janas Khan who both belong to NWFP, and detained in Leeds and Milton Keynes respectively, are expected to be released later on Friday after the completion of the normal process.
According to their lawyer, the students are now expected to be dealt with the usual immigration process and if their visas are found to be valid will be allowed to stay in the UK to continue their studies.
On April 8 this year, Manchester based police arrested 12 men in parallel raids at 10 addresses across Manchester, Liverpool and Lancashire.
Ten of those arrested were Pakistan-born nationals on student visas and one a UK-born British national. After three weeks, the charges were dropped due to lack of evidence, but they were handed over to the UK Borders Agency for deportation.
One student Tariq-ur-Rehman returned home voluntarily last month on the condition that the British authorities withdraw deportation orders.
Meanwhile, Amjad Malik, lawyer representing two students Abdul Wahab Khan and Shoaib Khan has applied for further bail before Special Immigration Appeals Commission which is due for hearing here on July 27.
July 17, 2009
LONDON, July 17 (APP)-The British authorities have decided to withdraw deportation orders on two of the nine Pakistani students detained on national security grounds. The students Sultan Sher and Janas Khan who both belong to NWFP, and detained in Leeds and Milton Keynes respectively, are expected to be released later on Friday after the completion of the normal process.
According to their lawyer, the students are now expected to be dealt with the usual immigration process and if their visas are found to be valid will be allowed to stay in the UK to continue their studies.
On April 8 this year, Manchester based police arrested 12 men in parallel raids at 10 addresses across Manchester, Liverpool and Lancashire.
Ten of those arrested were Pakistan-born nationals on student visas and one a UK-born British national. After three weeks, the charges were dropped due to lack of evidence, but they were handed over to the UK Borders Agency for deportation.
One student Tariq-ur-Rehman returned home voluntarily last month on the condition that the British authorities withdraw deportation orders.
Meanwhile, Amjad Malik, lawyer representing two students Abdul Wahab Khan and Shoaib Khan has applied for further bail before Special Immigration Appeals Commission which is due for hearing here on July 27.
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Taiwan News : 2 students held in UK terror raids to be freed
Friday, July 17, 2009
2 students held in UK terror raids to be freed
Associated Press | February 17, 20001
Britain's High Commission in Pakistan says two Pakistani men detained during a series of terrorism raids in northern England are due to be released.
The two men were among 12 students arrested in April and are being held in immigration detention. They had been due to be deported to Pakistan after the U.K. ruled they posed a risk to British national security.
British authorities had alleged the men were connected to an al-Qaida network based in the U.K., and intended to carry out a major terrorism attack.
The British High Commission in Islamabad said Friday that deportation proceedings had been dropped.
Lawyer Mohammed Ayub says his client Sultan Sher is one of the two men being released. Eight other men are awaiting deportation.
Associated Press | February 17, 20001
Britain's High Commission in Pakistan says two Pakistani men detained during a series of terrorism raids in northern England are due to be released.
The two men were among 12 students arrested in April and are being held in immigration detention. They had been due to be deported to Pakistan after the U.K. ruled they posed a risk to British national security.
British authorities had alleged the men were connected to an al-Qaida network based in the U.K., and intended to carry out a major terrorism attack.
The British High Commission in Islamabad said Friday that deportation proceedings had been dropped.
Lawyer Mohammed Ayub says his client Sultan Sher is one of the two men being released. Eight other men are awaiting deportation.
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TeleText : Pair released without charge
Friday, July 17, 2009
Pair released without charge
July 17, 2009
A man from Liverpool and a man from Manchester who the Home Office claimed were a threat to national security have been released without charge.
Sultan Sher and Janus Khan were among 12 men arrested in the north west and held in custody since April.
But they must now wear electronic tags and report to police as the Government seeks to deport them to Pakistan.
July 17, 2009
A man from Liverpool and a man from Manchester who the Home Office claimed were a threat to national security have been released without charge.
Sultan Sher and Janus Khan were among 12 men arrested in the north west and held in custody since April.
But they must now wear electronic tags and report to police as the Government seeks to deport them to Pakistan.
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Canadian Press : Britain to free 2 Pakistani students detained during April terror raids in northern England
Friday, July 17, 2009
Britain to free 2 Pakistani students detained during April terror raids in northern England
By David Stringer (CP) | July 17, 2009
LONDON — Two Pakistani men detained during a series of terrorism raids in northern England are no longer considered a threat and will be released, but they could still face deportation over immigration offences, British officials said Friday.
The two men were among 12 students arrested in high-profile April raids, and have been held for several months in immigration detention. They had been due to be deported to Pakistan after the U.K. ruled they posed a risk to British national security, but officials have concluded they are no longer a threat, Jennifer Wilkes, a spokeswoman for the British High Commission in Islamabad, said in a statement.
Judge John Mitting told a court hearing in May that Britain's Home Office alleged the arrested men were linked to al-Qaida and involved in planning terrorist attacks in Britain. The men have maintained their innocence.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the police operation had foiled a "very big terrorist plot," but law enforcement and security official have not disclosed any specifics of the alleged plans. Following the raids, police said there was insufficient evidence to charge any of the men with criminal offences. They have remained held for deportation since.
"Their case has been kept under constant review, and as soon as it became clear that these individuals did not meet the criteria for deportation, the decision was taken to drop deportation proceedings," Wilkes said.
"This has clearly been a difficult time for these individuals, which we regret. It was however necessary, given the reason for their arrest and detention, to carry out a rigorous investigation," she added.
The Home Office said the two men will be released on Friday, but that authorities will now attempt to deport the men on different grounds. One was refused a visa extension in March, and authorities will attempt to revoke the second man's student visa because they do not believe he is carrying out legitimate studies, the ministry said. Both will be fitted with electronic tags while their cases are considered.
Lawyer Mohammed Ayub, based in Bradford, northern England, said his client Sultan Sher is one of the two men being released. He said he represents two other men still detained.
"All our clients have maintained throughout their ordeal that they were here on lawful purposes as students. Our clients reiterate they are neither extremists nor terrorists," Ayub said.
In addition to the two students due to be released, eight other men are awaiting deportation - seven to Pakistan and one to Afghanistan. One other man has returned to Pakistan voluntarily and another is a British national who was freed following his arrest.
Families of the arrested students in Pakistan reacted with anger, and have demanded that the men either be charged with an offence, or freed and allowed to complete their studies in Britain.
The case rattled British-Pakistani relations, already under pressure after Brown said that at least three-quarters of all terrorist plots against the U.K. have links to Pakistan - and specifically the country's northwest, where al-Qaida and the Taliban have strongholds.
Ayub said Britain's government should consider holding an inquiry into the police operation, to review mistakes. "No other innocent person should have to suffer the ordeal that our clients have," he said.
"We appreciate that this case has caused concern to many people in Pakistan but want to make clear that the British government has at all times acted within U.K. law and in accordance with our duty to protect the safety of the public," Wilkes said.
Copyright © 2009 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
By David Stringer (CP) | July 17, 2009
LONDON — Two Pakistani men detained during a series of terrorism raids in northern England are no longer considered a threat and will be released, but they could still face deportation over immigration offences, British officials said Friday.
The two men were among 12 students arrested in high-profile April raids, and have been held for several months in immigration detention. They had been due to be deported to Pakistan after the U.K. ruled they posed a risk to British national security, but officials have concluded they are no longer a threat, Jennifer Wilkes, a spokeswoman for the British High Commission in Islamabad, said in a statement.
Judge John Mitting told a court hearing in May that Britain's Home Office alleged the arrested men were linked to al-Qaida and involved in planning terrorist attacks in Britain. The men have maintained their innocence.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the police operation had foiled a "very big terrorist plot," but law enforcement and security official have not disclosed any specifics of the alleged plans. Following the raids, police said there was insufficient evidence to charge any of the men with criminal offences. They have remained held for deportation since.
"Their case has been kept under constant review, and as soon as it became clear that these individuals did not meet the criteria for deportation, the decision was taken to drop deportation proceedings," Wilkes said.
"This has clearly been a difficult time for these individuals, which we regret. It was however necessary, given the reason for their arrest and detention, to carry out a rigorous investigation," she added.
The Home Office said the two men will be released on Friday, but that authorities will now attempt to deport the men on different grounds. One was refused a visa extension in March, and authorities will attempt to revoke the second man's student visa because they do not believe he is carrying out legitimate studies, the ministry said. Both will be fitted with electronic tags while their cases are considered.
Lawyer Mohammed Ayub, based in Bradford, northern England, said his client Sultan Sher is one of the two men being released. He said he represents two other men still detained.
"All our clients have maintained throughout their ordeal that they were here on lawful purposes as students. Our clients reiterate they are neither extremists nor terrorists," Ayub said.
In addition to the two students due to be released, eight other men are awaiting deportation - seven to Pakistan and one to Afghanistan. One other man has returned to Pakistan voluntarily and another is a British national who was freed following his arrest.
Families of the arrested students in Pakistan reacted with anger, and have demanded that the men either be charged with an offence, or freed and allowed to complete their studies in Britain.
The case rattled British-Pakistani relations, already under pressure after Brown said that at least three-quarters of all terrorist plots against the U.K. have links to Pakistan - and specifically the country's northwest, where al-Qaida and the Taliban have strongholds.
Ayub said Britain's government should consider holding an inquiry into the police operation, to review mistakes. "No other innocent person should have to suffer the ordeal that our clients have," he said.
"We appreciate that this case has caused concern to many people in Pakistan but want to make clear that the British government has at all times acted within U.K. law and in accordance with our duty to protect the safety of the public," Wilkes said.
Copyright © 2009 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
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Online News (Pakistan) : Two Pakistanis To Be Released From UK Immigration Detention
Friday, July 17, 2009
Two Pakistanis To Be Released From UK Immigration Detention
July 17, 2009
ISLAMABAD: Two Pakistanis who were detained by the British Authorities on April 8, 2009 under the Terrorism Act would be released.
11 Pakistani students were arrested on April 8 on suspicion of being involved in hatching terrorist plots in the UK. The British High Commission spokesperson, Jennifer Wilkes said Friday, "I can confirm that two individuals of Pakistani nationality arrested under the Terrorism Act in the UK on 8 April 2009 are being released from immigration detention where they had been held pending deportation on national security grounds.
This has clearly been a difficult time for these individuals, which we regret. It was however necessary, given the reason, to carry out a rigorous investigation. Those detained were given the full protection of UK law throughout their detention. An independent judge approved their continued detention at a hearing in May. Their case has been kept under constant review, and as soon as it became clear that these individuals did not meet the criteria for deportation, the decision was taken to drop deportation proceedings.
We appreciate that this case has caused concern to many people in Pakistan but want to make clear that the British Government has at all times acted within UK law and in accordance with our duty to protect the safety of the public", she said.
Nine out of these 11 men were released on April 22, 2009 after their remand expired and no charges were proven against them. Two continued to remain in custody, which have now been released.
July 17, 2009
ISLAMABAD: Two Pakistanis who were detained by the British Authorities on April 8, 2009 under the Terrorism Act would be released.
11 Pakistani students were arrested on April 8 on suspicion of being involved in hatching terrorist plots in the UK. The British High Commission spokesperson, Jennifer Wilkes said Friday, "I can confirm that two individuals of Pakistani nationality arrested under the Terrorism Act in the UK on 8 April 2009 are being released from immigration detention where they had been held pending deportation on national security grounds.
This has clearly been a difficult time for these individuals, which we regret. It was however necessary, given the reason, to carry out a rigorous investigation. Those detained were given the full protection of UK law throughout their detention. An independent judge approved their continued detention at a hearing in May. Their case has been kept under constant review, and as soon as it became clear that these individuals did not meet the criteria for deportation, the decision was taken to drop deportation proceedings.
We appreciate that this case has caused concern to many people in Pakistan but want to make clear that the British Government has at all times acted within UK law and in accordance with our duty to protect the safety of the public", she said.
Nine out of these 11 men were released on April 22, 2009 after their remand expired and no charges were proven against them. Two continued to remain in custody, which have now been released.
Manchester Evening News : Terror raids men freed
Friday, July 17, 2009
Terror raids men freed
July 17, 2009
A MAN from Manchester and one from Liverpool who the Home Office claimed were a threat to national security have been released from custody without charge.
Sultan Sher and Janus Khan were among 12 men held during raids in the north west of England in April amid an alleged terrorism plot.
The pair, who are in their mid 20s, were detained as the Home Office sought to deport them.
But the "threat to national security" allegation has been dropped, a solicitor for one of the men said.
Groundless
Mohammed Ayub said the pair now have to wear an electronic tag and report to police, while the government seeks to deport them to Pakistan for "visa irregularities".
Mr Ayub said the terrorism allegations against his client are "groundless" and he will oppose the continuing attempts to deport him.
He said: "It beggars belief that the Secretary of State could behave like this. Why was my client held in custody for all this time?
"I wish to state my client is entitled to an unreserved apology and no further action should be taken against him."
Of the remaining men held during the raid, one has joint British and Pakistani citizenship and has been released.
A Home Office spokesman said of the two released men: "These individuals no longer meet the required criteria for detention on the grounds of national security.
"They are currently detained pending removal on immigration grounds but legally we cannot hold them indefinitely."
July 17, 2009
A MAN from Manchester and one from Liverpool who the Home Office claimed were a threat to national security have been released from custody without charge.
Sultan Sher and Janus Khan were among 12 men held during raids in the north west of England in April amid an alleged terrorism plot.
The pair, who are in their mid 20s, were detained as the Home Office sought to deport them.
But the "threat to national security" allegation has been dropped, a solicitor for one of the men said.
Groundless
Mohammed Ayub said the pair now have to wear an electronic tag and report to police, while the government seeks to deport them to Pakistan for "visa irregularities".
Mr Ayub said the terrorism allegations against his client are "groundless" and he will oppose the continuing attempts to deport him.
He said: "It beggars belief that the Secretary of State could behave like this. Why was my client held in custody for all this time?
"I wish to state my client is entitled to an unreserved apology and no further action should be taken against him."
Of the remaining men held during the raid, one has joint British and Pakistani citizenship and has been released.
A Home Office spokesman said of the two released men: "These individuals no longer meet the required criteria for detention on the grounds of national security.
"They are currently detained pending removal on immigration grounds but legally we cannot hold them indefinitely."
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BBC : Two terror suspects to be freed
Friday, July 17, 2009
Two terror suspects to be freed
July 17, 2009
Two Pakistani students arrested in north west England in April accused of being part of an alleged terror plot are to be released.
Sultan Sher and Janus Khan were never charged but were due to be deported on the grounds of national security.
Seven of the 12 men who were arrested remain in custody awaiting deportation.
Mr Sher's solicitor called for an independent inquiry, saying his arrest and detention had been a "very serious" breach of human rights.
The released pair will be required to wear electronic tags as the Home Office still wants to deport them due to visa irregularities, the BBC understands.
Twelve students were arrested in the terror raids in Manchester and Liverpool, with three subsequently released.
'Robust measures'
The rest were put in prison pending deportation on the grounds of national security and their case, involving secret evidence they have not seen, is due back in court on 27 July.
The Home Office said it was not allowed to detain the men indefinitely.
"These individuals no longer meet the required criteria for detention on the grounds of national security. They are currently detained pending removal, but legally we cannot hold them indefinitely.
"We are therefore putting in place suitable and robust measures to ensure we are fully aware of their whereabouts as we progress their cases for removal."
Mohammed Ayub, solicitor for Sultan Sher, said the men had maintained they were not extremists or terrorists.
"Our clients were originally arrested in a blaze of publicity at gunpoint by the police. They were interviewed for 13 days and released into immigration detention without any criminal charges brought against them," he said.
"Our clients' plea of innocence is confirmed by the decision of the Home Office to firstly withdraw the intention to deport one of our clients on the grounds of national security and secondly to release him shortly.
"We believe that our original call for an independent inquiry into Operation Pathway has now been strengthened.
"We are of the opinion that lessons should be learnt as to how this investigation could have got it so terribly wrong and so that no other innocent person should have to suffer the ordeal that our clients have."
July 17, 2009
Two Pakistani students arrested in north west England in April accused of being part of an alleged terror plot are to be released.
Sultan Sher and Janus Khan were never charged but were due to be deported on the grounds of national security.
Seven of the 12 men who were arrested remain in custody awaiting deportation.
Mr Sher's solicitor called for an independent inquiry, saying his arrest and detention had been a "very serious" breach of human rights.
The released pair will be required to wear electronic tags as the Home Office still wants to deport them due to visa irregularities, the BBC understands.
Twelve students were arrested in the terror raids in Manchester and Liverpool, with three subsequently released.
'Robust measures'
The rest were put in prison pending deportation on the grounds of national security and their case, involving secret evidence they have not seen, is due back in court on 27 July.
The Home Office said it was not allowed to detain the men indefinitely.
"These individuals no longer meet the required criteria for detention on the grounds of national security. They are currently detained pending removal, but legally we cannot hold them indefinitely.
"We are therefore putting in place suitable and robust measures to ensure we are fully aware of their whereabouts as we progress their cases for removal."
Mohammed Ayub, solicitor for Sultan Sher, said the men had maintained they were not extremists or terrorists.
"Our clients were originally arrested in a blaze of publicity at gunpoint by the police. They were interviewed for 13 days and released into immigration detention without any criminal charges brought against them," he said.
"Our clients' plea of innocence is confirmed by the decision of the Home Office to firstly withdraw the intention to deport one of our clients on the grounds of national security and secondly to release him shortly.
"We believe that our original call for an independent inquiry into Operation Pathway has now been strengthened.
"We are of the opinion that lessons should be learnt as to how this investigation could have got it so terribly wrong and so that no other innocent person should have to suffer the ordeal that our clients have."
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Times : Oops! Building firm blurts out secrets of hush-hush MI5 HQ
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Oops! Building firm blurts out secrets of hush-hush MI5 HQ
David Leppard | June 14, 2009
DETAILS of one of Britain’s most sensitive spy bases have been revealed after they were posted on the internet by the company that built it.
In a security blunder that has irritated MI5, a publicity brochure placed online contains the address and full-colour pictures of its northern operations centre.
The building was opened amid great secrecy last year. It was used as a base for Operation Pathway, when 12 terror suspects thought to have been planning attacks on shopping centres in Manchester, were arrested. They were later released for lack of evidence.
In recent years MI5 has been happy to acknowledge the existence of its headquarters in London and Northern Ireland. They are large and located in cities, so spy chiefs considered it impractical to pretend they did not exist. By contrast the agency had been hoping to keep the existence of its £20m northern headquarters a secret.
MI5 decided to build the spy base after a review of the intelligence failures leading up to the suicide bombings in London on July 7, 2005.
Three of the four bombers came from the Leeds area and MI5 realised its coverage of regions outside London was inadequate.
Jonathan Evans, the director-general of MI5, disclosed the existence of the centre in secret testimony to the parliamentary intelligence and security committee last year.
Evans said it would have helped to speed up its response to incidents such as the Glasgow airport attack in June 2007. “If we had forward-mounted some of the equipment and surveillance in the north . . . our response would have been considerably quicker in getting to Scotland, particularly some of the equipment, because we had to find some way of getting the stuff up to Glasgow,” he told the MPs.
The committee’s report omitted the cost of the building on the grounds that it was a secret. The builders’ website reveals that it cost £20.2m.
The company describes the development as “a high specification state-of-the art commercial office” completed in February last year. “It’s a very nice building,” a senior Whitehall security official said this weekend.
That view is not shared by local residents who objected on the grounds that it was “an eyesore”. Planning files at the local council, which The Sunday Times has agreed not to name for security reasons, show that more than 60 local people raised objections.
A council official said information about the project was “classified” and it had no record of the plans. In fact, they were withdrawn from the council last year after MI5 discovered they had been publicly available for several months.
David Leppard | June 14, 2009
DETAILS of one of Britain’s most sensitive spy bases have been revealed after they were posted on the internet by the company that built it.
In a security blunder that has irritated MI5, a publicity brochure placed online contains the address and full-colour pictures of its northern operations centre.
The building was opened amid great secrecy last year. It was used as a base for Operation Pathway, when 12 terror suspects thought to have been planning attacks on shopping centres in Manchester, were arrested. They were later released for lack of evidence.
In recent years MI5 has been happy to acknowledge the existence of its headquarters in London and Northern Ireland. They are large and located in cities, so spy chiefs considered it impractical to pretend they did not exist. By contrast the agency had been hoping to keep the existence of its £20m northern headquarters a secret.
MI5 decided to build the spy base after a review of the intelligence failures leading up to the suicide bombings in London on July 7, 2005.
Three of the four bombers came from the Leeds area and MI5 realised its coverage of regions outside London was inadequate.
Jonathan Evans, the director-general of MI5, disclosed the existence of the centre in secret testimony to the parliamentary intelligence and security committee last year.
Evans said it would have helped to speed up its response to incidents such as the Glasgow airport attack in June 2007. “If we had forward-mounted some of the equipment and surveillance in the north . . . our response would have been considerably quicker in getting to Scotland, particularly some of the equipment, because we had to find some way of getting the stuff up to Glasgow,” he told the MPs.
The committee’s report omitted the cost of the building on the grounds that it was a secret. The builders’ website reveals that it cost £20.2m.
The company describes the development as “a high specification state-of-the art commercial office” completed in February last year. “It’s a very nice building,” a senior Whitehall security official said this weekend.
That view is not shared by local residents who objected on the grounds that it was “an eyesore”. Planning files at the local council, which The Sunday Times has agreed not to name for security reasons, show that more than 60 local people raised objections.
A council official said information about the project was “classified” and it had no record of the plans. In fact, they were withdrawn from the council last year after MI5 discovered they had been publicly available for several months.
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Guardian : Met police: six officers accused of torturing drug suspects
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Met police: six officers accused of torturing drug suspects
James Sturcke | June 10, 2009
Six Metropolitan police officers have been suspended from duty following allegations they used a form of water-based torture on suspected drugs smugglers, it emerged last night.
The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said it was investigating the conduct of officers based in Enfield, north London, during drugs raids in the borough last November.
Neither the IPCC nor Scotland Yard would comment on the nature of the allegations but sources said the officers were accused of pushing suspects' heads into buckets of water.
One IPCC document is said to use the word "waterboarding" – the CIA technique condemned as torture by Barack Obama – in connection with the allegations.
The torture claims are part of an investigation which also includes accusations that evidence was fabricated and suspects' property was stolen. It has already led to the abandonment of a drug trial, it was reported last night.
The IPCC is examining the conduct of six officers connected to drug raids in November in which four men and a woman were arrested in Enfield and Tottenham, north London.
Police said they found a large amount of cannabis and the suspects were charged with importation of a class C drug. The case was abandoned four months later when the Crown Prosecution Service said "it would not have been in the public interest to proceed".
Last night the Times reported that any trial, by revealing the torture claims, would have compromised the criminal investigation into the six officers.
None of the officers under suspicion has been arrested, but the IPCC said last night: "This is an ongoing criminal investigation and as such all six officers will be criminally interviewed under caution."
A Scotland Yard spokesman said a police employee had raised concerns about the conduct of officers during an internal investigation into allegations of mishandling of property.
He described the allegations as serious and raising real concern, saying they would be treated seriously."The Met does not tolerate conduct which falls below the standards that the public and the many outstanding Met officers and staff expect. Any allegations of such behaviour are treated very seriously, as this case illustrates, and if found true the strongest possible action will be taken."
James Sturcke | June 10, 2009
Six Metropolitan police officers have been suspended from duty following allegations they used a form of water-based torture on suspected drugs smugglers, it emerged last night.
The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) said it was investigating the conduct of officers based in Enfield, north London, during drugs raids in the borough last November.
Neither the IPCC nor Scotland Yard would comment on the nature of the allegations but sources said the officers were accused of pushing suspects' heads into buckets of water.
One IPCC document is said to use the word "waterboarding" – the CIA technique condemned as torture by Barack Obama – in connection with the allegations.
The torture claims are part of an investigation which also includes accusations that evidence was fabricated and suspects' property was stolen. It has already led to the abandonment of a drug trial, it was reported last night.
The IPCC is examining the conduct of six officers connected to drug raids in November in which four men and a woman were arrested in Enfield and Tottenham, north London.
Police said they found a large amount of cannabis and the suspects were charged with importation of a class C drug. The case was abandoned four months later when the Crown Prosecution Service said "it would not have been in the public interest to proceed".
Last night the Times reported that any trial, by revealing the torture claims, would have compromised the criminal investigation into the six officers.
None of the officers under suspicion has been arrested, but the IPCC said last night: "This is an ongoing criminal investigation and as such all six officers will be criminally interviewed under caution."
A Scotland Yard spokesman said a police employee had raised concerns about the conduct of officers during an internal investigation into allegations of mishandling of property.
He described the allegations as serious and raising real concern, saying they would be treated seriously."The Met does not tolerate conduct which falls below the standards that the public and the many outstanding Met officers and staff expect. Any allegations of such behaviour are treated very seriously, as this case illustrates, and if found true the strongest possible action will be taken."
Pakistan Times : Detained student decides to leave Britain voluntarily
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Detained student decides to leave Britain voluntarily
'Pakistan Times' UK Bureau | May 31, 2009
LONDON (UK): Accepting the offer from the British Home Secretary to leave the UK voluntarily on the condition that the deportation order against him is withdrawn, a detained Pakistani student Tariq-ur-Rehman is likely to return home next week.
His lawyer Amjad Malik said on Saturday that he would meeting with the concerned British officials on Monday to finalise the arrangements whereby Tariq is flown home by Wednesday from Manchester where is currently detained.
“The British authorities have offered him a one way ticket to Pakistan and there are some other legal matters that would come under discussion at the meeting,” Malik said. The Miran Shah-based student has decided to accept the offer to leave the UK of his own volition in view of the family matters and can no longer afford to remain under detention, he said.
“Rahman has lost his mother and wife and has five children to look after therefore he has decided to accept the Home Secretary offer.”
Meanwhile, an independent Reviewer of terrorism legislation Lord Alex Carlyle has met three Pakistani students Abdul Wahab Khan, Shoaib Khan and Tariq Ur Rehman in appeal before Special Immigration Appeals Commission.
Lord Carlyle, who is a member of British Parliament Upper House reports on terrorism legislation as a monitor to improve its operation and is currently reviewing Operation Pathway conducted between April 8 to 21 that led to the arrest of 12 persons including 10 Pakistani students on terror charges which were subsequent dropped due to lack of evidence.
All students raised high handedness of Liverpool police who used armed response unit to arrest them during which few students sustained injuries and bruises, said lawyer Malik. According to him, they raised issues on their treatment and and questioned the wisdom as to why they are being deported when no charges were made.
Lord Carlyle earlier had a detailed meeting with Malik at his Rochdale Chamber who briefed him about students plight and their concerns. Malik also highlighted the legal lacuna that all detained under terrorism legislation must be afforded an opportunity to make a bail application after 7 days of their arrest.
Both Malik and Lord Carlyle also met Prison Governor Richard Vince and were assured that as these detainees are not criminals facing trial, they are being provided best facilities as possible including prayer time, 3 free times, halal food and leisure and training facilities.
Lord Carlyle assured the lawyer and the detainees that he will raise all these issues in his independent report and also will contact higher officials to relax some conditions regarding books and telephone access to their families forthwith.
'Pakistan Times' UK Bureau | May 31, 2009
LONDON (UK): Accepting the offer from the British Home Secretary to leave the UK voluntarily on the condition that the deportation order against him is withdrawn, a detained Pakistani student Tariq-ur-Rehman is likely to return home next week.
His lawyer Amjad Malik said on Saturday that he would meeting with the concerned British officials on Monday to finalise the arrangements whereby Tariq is flown home by Wednesday from Manchester where is currently detained.
“The British authorities have offered him a one way ticket to Pakistan and there are some other legal matters that would come under discussion at the meeting,” Malik said. The Miran Shah-based student has decided to accept the offer to leave the UK of his own volition in view of the family matters and can no longer afford to remain under detention, he said.
“Rahman has lost his mother and wife and has five children to look after therefore he has decided to accept the Home Secretary offer.”
Meanwhile, an independent Reviewer of terrorism legislation Lord Alex Carlyle has met three Pakistani students Abdul Wahab Khan, Shoaib Khan and Tariq Ur Rehman in appeal before Special Immigration Appeals Commission.
Lord Carlyle, who is a member of British Parliament Upper House reports on terrorism legislation as a monitor to improve its operation and is currently reviewing Operation Pathway conducted between April 8 to 21 that led to the arrest of 12 persons including 10 Pakistani students on terror charges which were subsequent dropped due to lack of evidence.
All students raised high handedness of Liverpool police who used armed response unit to arrest them during which few students sustained injuries and bruises, said lawyer Malik. According to him, they raised issues on their treatment and and questioned the wisdom as to why they are being deported when no charges were made.
Lord Carlyle earlier had a detailed meeting with Malik at his Rochdale Chamber who briefed him about students plight and their concerns. Malik also highlighted the legal lacuna that all detained under terrorism legislation must be afforded an opportunity to make a bail application after 7 days of their arrest.
Both Malik and Lord Carlyle also met Prison Governor Richard Vince and were assured that as these detainees are not criminals facing trial, they are being provided best facilities as possible including prayer time, 3 free times, halal food and leisure and training facilities.
Lord Carlyle assured the lawyer and the detainees that he will raise all these issues in his independent report and also will contact higher officials to relax some conditions regarding books and telephone access to their families forthwith.
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Telegraph : Taliban target Britain on 'orders' from al-Qaeda
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Taliban target Britain on 'orders' from al-Qaeda
By Duncan Gardham, Security Correspondent | May 30, 2009
A Taliban-trained terrorist was part of a cell sent to bomb Britain as revenge for their presence in Afghanistan, it has emerged.
The terrorist informant has told prosecutors he was trained by Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of the Pakistan Taliban, and was planning a series of suicide attacks with 11 other men.
The informant, known as "Ahmed", told investigators the bombers were to work in pairs using a "device carried in a backpack with a third person to detonate a remote control" in order to ensure the bombers went through with their mission.
Details of the attempted attacks emerged in papers submitted to the Spanish authorities in a case against the alleged bombers, who were arrested in raids in the Raval district of Barcelona in January last year.
It is claimed the attacks were to begin on the Barcelona underground system and then spread to the other European countries with a presence in Afghanistan, thought to include Britain, according to new documents.
The information echoed claims made by British security services that a terrorist cell was sent to Manchester from the Taliban heartland in Pakistan's lawless tribal areas.
British investigators believe that the cell, which was allegedly planning attacks on the Trafford and Arndale shopping centres over the Easter holidays, had connections with al-Qaeda, and Spanish prosecutors say their cell may also have had links with al-Qaeda.
The terrorist group is believed to have formed a "holy alliance" with the Taliban to launch terrorist attacks on foreign soil.
Instead of relying on British-born men travelling to Pakistan for training, al-Qaeda is now recruiting "ready made" terrorists from among the Taliban, investigators believe.
The 10 men arrested in the north west are fighting deportation on national security grounds after Government lawyers accused them of being members of a "UK-based network linked to al-Qaeda involved in attack planning".
Spanish police found chemicals including nitrocellulose and potassium perchlorate along with batteries, timers and cables in the raids.
They also found "materials for indoctrination" relating to attacks against Nato forces in Afghanistan and books and DVDs.
Spanish prosecutors submitted documents laying out their case earlier this month and Dolores Delgado Garcia, a prosecutor at Spain's National Court, told the Daily Telegraph she believed the Barcelona cell was inspired by speeches by Osama bin Laden about the "loss of Andalucia" once part of the Muslim Ottoman empire.
"Al-Qaeda has been targeting Spain because of its historic associations with Andalucia," she said. "But other cities in Europe where countries have troops in Afghanistan were also targets."
Explaining her case at a top-level conference organised by New York University's Centre for Law and Security, she said "Ahmed" had become a "protected witness" and had told them that "Baitullah Mehsud would make demands and when they were not complied with, they would launch their attacks".
Ahmed told them he had trained at a terrorist camp in Waziristan, in Pakistan's tribal areas, and met Mehsud.
The men allegedly arrived in Spain via Germany using false travel documents.
Ahmed, a member of the fundamentalist group Tablighi Jamaat which is popular in the tribal areas, had second thoughts about launching a suicide attack when he was among those told to call his family and "say goodbye".
He is said to have refused to participate and contacted French intelligence, who in turn got in touch with the Spanish.
They have named Maroof Ahmed Mirza, 40, an imam at a mosque in Raval, as the leader of the cell along with Elia Mohammad Ayud Bibi, 64, while three others, Afees Ahmed, Qadeer Malik and Iqbal Sabih, were allegedly the bomb-makers.
The suicide bombers are said to have included Mohammed Shoaib, Mehmooh Khalid, Imran Cheema and ur-Rehman Aqeel Khalid.
Their other targets are said to have included Germany, France and Portugal.
By Duncan Gardham, Security Correspondent | May 30, 2009
A Taliban-trained terrorist was part of a cell sent to bomb Britain as revenge for their presence in Afghanistan, it has emerged.
The terrorist informant has told prosecutors he was trained by Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of the Pakistan Taliban, and was planning a series of suicide attacks with 11 other men.
The informant, known as "Ahmed", told investigators the bombers were to work in pairs using a "device carried in a backpack with a third person to detonate a remote control" in order to ensure the bombers went through with their mission.
Details of the attempted attacks emerged in papers submitted to the Spanish authorities in a case against the alleged bombers, who were arrested in raids in the Raval district of Barcelona in January last year.
It is claimed the attacks were to begin on the Barcelona underground system and then spread to the other European countries with a presence in Afghanistan, thought to include Britain, according to new documents.
The information echoed claims made by British security services that a terrorist cell was sent to Manchester from the Taliban heartland in Pakistan's lawless tribal areas.
British investigators believe that the cell, which was allegedly planning attacks on the Trafford and Arndale shopping centres over the Easter holidays, had connections with al-Qaeda, and Spanish prosecutors say their cell may also have had links with al-Qaeda.
The terrorist group is believed to have formed a "holy alliance" with the Taliban to launch terrorist attacks on foreign soil.
Instead of relying on British-born men travelling to Pakistan for training, al-Qaeda is now recruiting "ready made" terrorists from among the Taliban, investigators believe.
The 10 men arrested in the north west are fighting deportation on national security grounds after Government lawyers accused them of being members of a "UK-based network linked to al-Qaeda involved in attack planning".
Spanish police found chemicals including nitrocellulose and potassium perchlorate along with batteries, timers and cables in the raids.
They also found "materials for indoctrination" relating to attacks against Nato forces in Afghanistan and books and DVDs.
Spanish prosecutors submitted documents laying out their case earlier this month and Dolores Delgado Garcia, a prosecutor at Spain's National Court, told the Daily Telegraph she believed the Barcelona cell was inspired by speeches by Osama bin Laden about the "loss of Andalucia" once part of the Muslim Ottoman empire.
"Al-Qaeda has been targeting Spain because of its historic associations with Andalucia," she said. "But other cities in Europe where countries have troops in Afghanistan were also targets."
Explaining her case at a top-level conference organised by New York University's Centre for Law and Security, she said "Ahmed" had become a "protected witness" and had told them that "Baitullah Mehsud would make demands and when they were not complied with, they would launch their attacks".
Ahmed told them he had trained at a terrorist camp in Waziristan, in Pakistan's tribal areas, and met Mehsud.
The men allegedly arrived in Spain via Germany using false travel documents.
Ahmed, a member of the fundamentalist group Tablighi Jamaat which is popular in the tribal areas, had second thoughts about launching a suicide attack when he was among those told to call his family and "say goodbye".
He is said to have refused to participate and contacted French intelligence, who in turn got in touch with the Spanish.
They have named Maroof Ahmed Mirza, 40, an imam at a mosque in Raval, as the leader of the cell along with Elia Mohammad Ayud Bibi, 64, while three others, Afees Ahmed, Qadeer Malik and Iqbal Sabih, were allegedly the bomb-makers.
The suicide bombers are said to have included Mohammed Shoaib, Mehmooh Khalid, Imran Cheema and ur-Rehman Aqeel Khalid.
Their other targets are said to have included Germany, France and Portugal.
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Muslim News : Apologise for terror arrests Labour MP tells Govt
Friday, May 29, 2009
Apologise for terror arrests Labour MP tells Govt
By Elham Asaad Buaras and Ahmed J Versi | May 29, 2009
Labour MP for Glasgow Central, Mohammad Sarwar, has asked the Government to apologise for its part in the recent high-profile arrests of innocent Muslim students under anti-terror laws on April 8. The case against 12 men involved in what Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, called a “major terrorist plot” amounted to no more than an email and a few telephone conversations, it emerged; all the men were subsequently released without charge on April 22.
Eleven Pakistani students and one British man were freed after extensive searches of 14 properties in north-west England failed to locate any evidence of terrorist activity.
However, nine of the men are due to be deported after being handed over to the UK Border Agency. A spokesman for 10 Downing Street said, “We are seeking to remove these individuals on grounds of national security. Where a foreign national poses a threat to the country we will seek to exclude or deport them where appropriate.”
Sarwar, who issued an Early Day Motion on the subject, urged the Government to apologise over the arrests. He told The Muslim News, “High profile arrests give a bad name to not only those who were arrested but to the whole Pakistani community as well. There is no evidence that they were involved in any terrorist activities. The Government should do the right thing and apologise to the young people who were arrested.” “What has disturbed me in this case is that after they were released without charge, they were handed over to the UK Borders Agency so that they can be deported to Pakistan. This is an unfair treatment to these young people. People and political leaders in Pakistan are very angry and very unhappy with the whole scenario and feel very strongly that they are marginalised and given a bad name,” said Sarwar
Lawyers say the deportation orders are based on their clients being involved in extremist activity and therefore their presence in the UK is not conducive to the public good on the grounds of National Security. Lawyers are calling for an independent inquiry into Operation Pathway.
Councillor Afzal Khan who was briefed by the police shortly before the release of the Pakistani nationals, told The Muslim News he was “deeply concerned” by the arrests and the way the arrests were made. “Too many times the police are getting wrong. This affects public confidence in the police and adversely affecting intercommunity relationships. So it is vital for an independent inquiry into the arrests so that lessons are learnt,” said Khan, in whose area some of the suspects were arrested.
Muslim Council of Britain spokesman, Inayat Bunglawala, said the Prime Minister’s comments on the arrests had been prejudicial and premature. “These arrests took place in very dramatic circumstances with students being pulled from universities and thrown to the floor. Instead of releasing them with good grace and making clear a mistake has been made the Government is seeking to deport them citing a very vague national security threat.”
The operation was launched after the interception of telephone calls and emails which pointed towards a bombing campaign by al-Qa’ida. A senior Pakistani official said the British authorities had failed to consult them before carrying out the arrests and greater co-operation would have avoided “embarrassing mistakes” for the British Government.
Mohammed Ayub, lawyer of three of the young men wrongfully arrested, told The Muslim News his clients who were arrested with “no evidence of any wrongdoing” and in “a blaze of publicity” deserve to have their name cleared “by a similar amount of publicity”.
He added, “Our clients have no criminal history, they were here lawfully on student visas and all were pursuing their studies and working part-time.
“Their arrest and detention has been a very serious breach of their human rights. Now, adding insult to injury, attempts are being made to deport them. We intend to challenge the deportation orders and, if necessary, will take our fight to the highest courts.”
Assistant Chief Constable Dave Thompson, in charge of the raids for Greater Manchester Police, said, “The operations the GMP and North West Counter Terrorism Unit carry out have one objective to protect the public. They are not targeted at any particular groups or communities.”
However, Amjad Malik, representing three of the men arrested told The Muslim News the threat of deportation was nothing more than a face saving exercise based on “stereotyping and Islamophobia”.
“That allegation of involving ‘Islamic extremist activity’ is vague and too farfetched and requires a definition by courts as to what is classed as ‘extremist activity’ as to some reading prayer, fasting, keeping a beard, going on Blogs, sharing flat, arranging meals could be an Islamic extremist activity…to the appellants it’s stereotyping and Islamophobia.”
He added that had there been “any extreme element of suspicion and evidence, they would have been charged and brought before a court of law to face trial. However, using immigration process seems an ‘eye wash’ to divert attention from their ‘innocence’ and claims of ‘foiling a big terrorist plot’.”
Labour MP for Glasgow Central Mohammad Sarwar and Perry Bar MP Khalid Mahmood warned the government against removing the men whom it has failed to charge.
In a letter to Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, the MPs said the raids and deportation would inflict “irreparable damage” to race relations. Efforts to win the “hearts and minds” of British Muslims had been undermined by the raids, they said.
The British Government has rejected the appeal, suggesting that all had been freed only because of a lack of evidence. “The reason we are taking deportation action is that we considered that there is sufficient evidence to believe the particular individuals concerned represent a threat to the national security of this country but against whom we’ve been advised that we can’t bring charges,” Smith said.
“We are able to seek deportation as the criteria we must meet are set at a lower threshold than those in a prosecution,” she said in a copy of the letter to Sarwar obtained by The Muslim News. The arrests were made on “credible intelligence to suggest there was an imminent threat,” she insisted.
The MPs said they had been urged to intervene by members of the Pakistani community. The decision to seek their deportation also provoked a diplomatic row with Pakistan, highlighted when President Asif Ali Zardari pulled out of a joint press conference with Brown during a visit to Islamabad at the end of April.
The students are appealing against their deportation orders to the Special Immigration Appeals Commission, the country’s most secret court that was established after the Government lost a case at the European Human Rights Court in 1996.
On May 14, the court refused bail on the basis that they are deemed “high risk” to national security as submitted by the Secretary of State. The next hearing is on July 27. The whole arrests saga is currently being separately investigated by the Government’s independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, Lord Carlile, whose findings are due in the next few weeks.
By Elham Asaad Buaras and Ahmed J Versi | May 29, 2009
Labour MP for Glasgow Central, Mohammad Sarwar, has asked the Government to apologise for its part in the recent high-profile arrests of innocent Muslim students under anti-terror laws on April 8. The case against 12 men involved in what Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, called a “major terrorist plot” amounted to no more than an email and a few telephone conversations, it emerged; all the men were subsequently released without charge on April 22.
Eleven Pakistani students and one British man were freed after extensive searches of 14 properties in north-west England failed to locate any evidence of terrorist activity.
However, nine of the men are due to be deported after being handed over to the UK Border Agency. A spokesman for 10 Downing Street said, “We are seeking to remove these individuals on grounds of national security. Where a foreign national poses a threat to the country we will seek to exclude or deport them where appropriate.”
Sarwar, who issued an Early Day Motion on the subject, urged the Government to apologise over the arrests. He told The Muslim News, “High profile arrests give a bad name to not only those who were arrested but to the whole Pakistani community as well. There is no evidence that they were involved in any terrorist activities. The Government should do the right thing and apologise to the young people who were arrested.” “What has disturbed me in this case is that after they were released without charge, they were handed over to the UK Borders Agency so that they can be deported to Pakistan. This is an unfair treatment to these young people. People and political leaders in Pakistan are very angry and very unhappy with the whole scenario and feel very strongly that they are marginalised and given a bad name,” said Sarwar
Lawyers say the deportation orders are based on their clients being involved in extremist activity and therefore their presence in the UK is not conducive to the public good on the grounds of National Security. Lawyers are calling for an independent inquiry into Operation Pathway.
Councillor Afzal Khan who was briefed by the police shortly before the release of the Pakistani nationals, told The Muslim News he was “deeply concerned” by the arrests and the way the arrests were made. “Too many times the police are getting wrong. This affects public confidence in the police and adversely affecting intercommunity relationships. So it is vital for an independent inquiry into the arrests so that lessons are learnt,” said Khan, in whose area some of the suspects were arrested.
Muslim Council of Britain spokesman, Inayat Bunglawala, said the Prime Minister’s comments on the arrests had been prejudicial and premature. “These arrests took place in very dramatic circumstances with students being pulled from universities and thrown to the floor. Instead of releasing them with good grace and making clear a mistake has been made the Government is seeking to deport them citing a very vague national security threat.”
The operation was launched after the interception of telephone calls and emails which pointed towards a bombing campaign by al-Qa’ida. A senior Pakistani official said the British authorities had failed to consult them before carrying out the arrests and greater co-operation would have avoided “embarrassing mistakes” for the British Government.
Mohammed Ayub, lawyer of three of the young men wrongfully arrested, told The Muslim News his clients who were arrested with “no evidence of any wrongdoing” and in “a blaze of publicity” deserve to have their name cleared “by a similar amount of publicity”.
He added, “Our clients have no criminal history, they were here lawfully on student visas and all were pursuing their studies and working part-time.
“Their arrest and detention has been a very serious breach of their human rights. Now, adding insult to injury, attempts are being made to deport them. We intend to challenge the deportation orders and, if necessary, will take our fight to the highest courts.”
Assistant Chief Constable Dave Thompson, in charge of the raids for Greater Manchester Police, said, “The operations the GMP and North West Counter Terrorism Unit carry out have one objective to protect the public. They are not targeted at any particular groups or communities.”
However, Amjad Malik, representing three of the men arrested told The Muslim News the threat of deportation was nothing more than a face saving exercise based on “stereotyping and Islamophobia”.
“That allegation of involving ‘Islamic extremist activity’ is vague and too farfetched and requires a definition by courts as to what is classed as ‘extremist activity’ as to some reading prayer, fasting, keeping a beard, going on Blogs, sharing flat, arranging meals could be an Islamic extremist activity…to the appellants it’s stereotyping and Islamophobia.”
He added that had there been “any extreme element of suspicion and evidence, they would have been charged and brought before a court of law to face trial. However, using immigration process seems an ‘eye wash’ to divert attention from their ‘innocence’ and claims of ‘foiling a big terrorist plot’.”
Labour MP for Glasgow Central Mohammad Sarwar and Perry Bar MP Khalid Mahmood warned the government against removing the men whom it has failed to charge.
In a letter to Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, the MPs said the raids and deportation would inflict “irreparable damage” to race relations. Efforts to win the “hearts and minds” of British Muslims had been undermined by the raids, they said.
The British Government has rejected the appeal, suggesting that all had been freed only because of a lack of evidence. “The reason we are taking deportation action is that we considered that there is sufficient evidence to believe the particular individuals concerned represent a threat to the national security of this country but against whom we’ve been advised that we can’t bring charges,” Smith said.
“We are able to seek deportation as the criteria we must meet are set at a lower threshold than those in a prosecution,” she said in a copy of the letter to Sarwar obtained by The Muslim News. The arrests were made on “credible intelligence to suggest there was an imminent threat,” she insisted.
The MPs said they had been urged to intervene by members of the Pakistani community. The decision to seek their deportation also provoked a diplomatic row with Pakistan, highlighted when President Asif Ali Zardari pulled out of a joint press conference with Brown during a visit to Islamabad at the end of April.
The students are appealing against their deportation orders to the Special Immigration Appeals Commission, the country’s most secret court that was established after the Government lost a case at the European Human Rights Court in 1996.
On May 14, the court refused bail on the basis that they are deemed “high risk” to national security as submitted by the Secretary of State. The next hearing is on July 27. The whole arrests saga is currently being separately investigated by the Government’s independent reviewer of terrorism legislation, Lord Carlile, whose findings are due in the next few weeks.
Filed under
Amjad Malik,
bomb,
email,
Manchester
by Winter Patriot
on Friday, May 29, 2009 |
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Asian News : Terror arrest student going home
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Terror arrest student going home
May 23, 2009
ONE of the Manchester students who were arrested after a series of terror raids has agreed to go back to Pakistan.
Tariq Ur Rehman has accepted deportation saying he could not handle the stress of being locked up in a category A prison.
He is amongst 10 students who are currently being detained and threatened with deportation despite not being charged during police raids last month where 12 people where arrested in Manchester, Liverpool and Lancashire under the terror act.
The students were released without charge but then handed over to UK Borders Agency for deportation.
Four of the students were kept at Strangeways and three have now been moved to high security prison Belmarsh - the home of Britain's toughest criminals and often described as Hellmarsh.
Said campaigner Tariq Mehmood who helped set up Justice for the North West Ten following their imprisonment: "It is understandable why someone should wish to leave a country that wants to incarcerate him as a top security prisoner without charge, without knowing when he will be released, without having the chance to talk to any of his loved ones, but what does it say of the system that is doing this?
"It is outrageous that young men who came here to study or anyone else for that matter should be forced into this choice. We must act together to get justice for Tariq Ur Rahman and all the others in his situation."
Parents of four of the students have also written a letter to PM Gordon Brown condemning the arrests and the following imprisonment.
In the letter they say: "Our children are still being punished for crimes that they never committed...We are a poor people and some of the parents have arranged loans for their kids to send them abroad for education," and have asked for their immediate release.
Since the arrests there have been many high profile meetings in Manchester condemning the terror raids and what campaigners have said to be "criminalisation of the Muslim community."
Councillor Afzal Khan from Cheetham, who met up with some of the parents of the detained students during a recent trip in Pakistan spoke of his visit at a public meeting at Saffron Restaurant in Cheetham Hill.
Said Mr Khan: "Some of these parents are very old and come from remote areas in Pakistan and don't fully understand what's going on.
"As far as they are concerned they have spent their life savings to send their sons to the UK for study and now they are being detained despite not being charged with anything.
"They are obviously worried. One parent told me that his son had never been in trouble in his life and he just couldn't understand why an innocent man was locked up in prison.
"They don't have any news and have not heard from their sons and have been kept in the dark by the authorities. They are also worried about the future of their sons and these arrest have basically put the students and their families in turmoil."
A petition, collected by Muslim Labour councillors and candidates in the city with over 4,000 signatures mainly from residents in Longsight and Cheetham asking for the release of the students, has been sent to the Home Secretary.
Added Mr Khan: "The huge number of people that have signed the petition goes to show the overwhelming support for these students.
"The local community feel very strongly about their detention and feel they should be set free."
May 23, 2009
ONE of the Manchester students who were arrested after a series of terror raids has agreed to go back to Pakistan.
Tariq Ur Rehman has accepted deportation saying he could not handle the stress of being locked up in a category A prison.
He is amongst 10 students who are currently being detained and threatened with deportation despite not being charged during police raids last month where 12 people where arrested in Manchester, Liverpool and Lancashire under the terror act.
The students were released without charge but then handed over to UK Borders Agency for deportation.
Four of the students were kept at Strangeways and three have now been moved to high security prison Belmarsh - the home of Britain's toughest criminals and often described as Hellmarsh.
Said campaigner Tariq Mehmood who helped set up Justice for the North West Ten following their imprisonment: "It is understandable why someone should wish to leave a country that wants to incarcerate him as a top security prisoner without charge, without knowing when he will be released, without having the chance to talk to any of his loved ones, but what does it say of the system that is doing this?
"It is outrageous that young men who came here to study or anyone else for that matter should be forced into this choice. We must act together to get justice for Tariq Ur Rahman and all the others in his situation."
Parents of four of the students have also written a letter to PM Gordon Brown condemning the arrests and the following imprisonment.
In the letter they say: "Our children are still being punished for crimes that they never committed...We are a poor people and some of the parents have arranged loans for their kids to send them abroad for education," and have asked for their immediate release.
Since the arrests there have been many high profile meetings in Manchester condemning the terror raids and what campaigners have said to be "criminalisation of the Muslim community."
Councillor Afzal Khan from Cheetham, who met up with some of the parents of the detained students during a recent trip in Pakistan spoke of his visit at a public meeting at Saffron Restaurant in Cheetham Hill.
Said Mr Khan: "Some of these parents are very old and come from remote areas in Pakistan and don't fully understand what's going on.
"As far as they are concerned they have spent their life savings to send their sons to the UK for study and now they are being detained despite not being charged with anything.
"They are obviously worried. One parent told me that his son had never been in trouble in his life and he just couldn't understand why an innocent man was locked up in prison.
"They don't have any news and have not heard from their sons and have been kept in the dark by the authorities. They are also worried about the future of their sons and these arrest have basically put the students and their families in turmoil."
A petition, collected by Muslim Labour councillors and candidates in the city with over 4,000 signatures mainly from residents in Longsight and Cheetham asking for the release of the students, has been sent to the Home Secretary.
Added Mr Khan: "The huge number of people that have signed the petition goes to show the overwhelming support for these students.
"The local community feel very strongly about their detention and feel they should be set free."
Filed under
Liverpool,
Manchester,
Tariq Rehman
by Winter Patriot
on Saturday, May 23, 2009 |
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TeleText : Terror raid student 'trapped'
Monday, May 18, 2009
Terror raid student 'trapped'
May 18, 2009
A student detained pending deportation after being arrested in the North West but not charged over a suspected terror plot is trapped, his lawyer said.
Tariq ur Rihman was among 12 people held in police raids in April in Lancs, Greater Manchester and Liverpool.
Rihman's solicitor Amjad Malik said his client is not coping well after being moved between high security prisons.
May 18, 2009
A student detained pending deportation after being arrested in the North West but not charged over a suspected terror plot is trapped, his lawyer said.
Tariq ur Rihman was among 12 people held in police raids in April in Lancs, Greater Manchester and Liverpool.
Rihman's solicitor Amjad Malik said his client is not coping well after being moved between high security prisons.
Filed under
Amjad Malik,
Liverpool,
Manchester
by Winter Patriot
on Monday, May 18, 2009 |
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The Nation : Pak HC goes thru humiliating search
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Pak HC goes thru humiliating search
By Asif Mehmood | May 17, 2009
LONDON-Pakistan High Commissioner to UK, Wajid Shamsul Hassan had to go through a painful process during his meeting with Pakistani students at UK high security Belmarsh prison on Saturday, entirely unlike what his counterpart enjoys in Pakistan, The Nation has learnt.
High Commissioner, Wajid Shamsul Hassan went to see the Pakistani students Shoaib Khan, Abdul Wahab Khan and Tariqur Rehman on reports that one of them was seriously disturbed during detention at notorious category A prison Berlmarsh and wanted to go back to Pakistan.
While talking to The Nation, he confirmed that he had to go through the same process what one goes through at the airport.
According to a source, he may have been reportedly photographed, fingerprinted and physically searched by taking off his shoes, belt and jacket before entering category A to see his country’s citizens.
According to a source, the same process was applied to lawyers and Consul Generals of Pakistan Masroor Junejo and Chaudhry Arif Mehmood at Manchester and Milton Keynes on their visits to prison on April 28, 2009 but Pakistani authorities did not raise any voice against it.
The humiliation with Pakistani diplomats is the violation of 1964 Vienna Convention and Counsellor Relations against the diplomatic norms.
By Asif Mehmood | May 17, 2009
LONDON-Pakistan High Commissioner to UK, Wajid Shamsul Hassan had to go through a painful process during his meeting with Pakistani students at UK high security Belmarsh prison on Saturday, entirely unlike what his counterpart enjoys in Pakistan, The Nation has learnt.
High Commissioner, Wajid Shamsul Hassan went to see the Pakistani students Shoaib Khan, Abdul Wahab Khan and Tariqur Rehman on reports that one of them was seriously disturbed during detention at notorious category A prison Berlmarsh and wanted to go back to Pakistan.
While talking to The Nation, he confirmed that he had to go through the same process what one goes through at the airport.
According to a source, he may have been reportedly photographed, fingerprinted and physically searched by taking off his shoes, belt and jacket before entering category A to see his country’s citizens.
According to a source, the same process was applied to lawyers and Consul Generals of Pakistan Masroor Junejo and Chaudhry Arif Mehmood at Manchester and Milton Keynes on their visits to prison on April 28, 2009 but Pakistani authorities did not raise any voice against it.
The humiliation with Pakistani diplomats is the violation of 1964 Vienna Convention and Counsellor Relations against the diplomatic norms.
Filed under
Abdul Wahab Khan,
Manchester,
Shoaib Khan,
Tariq Rehman
by Winter Patriot
on Sunday, May 17, 2009 |
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Daily Express : One In 14 Terror Suspects Convicted
Sunday, May 17, 2009
ONE IN 14 TERROR SUSPECTS CONVICTED
By Gabriel Milland | May 14, 2009
JUST one in 14 people arrested for alleged terror offences is convicted, official figures showed yesterday.
Government data showed that less than a third of those arrested are even charged with a terror-related offence.
The figures are a major embarrassment to ministers who fought a long battle to increase the time terror suspects can be held without charge. Currently, suspects can be held for up to 42 days.
They also come just weeks after raids on a supposed major terror plot in Liverpool and Manchester resulted in no one being charged.
Shadow security minister Baroness Neville-Jones said courts should get the right to use phone-tap intelligence as evidence. She said: “The Government needs to allow intercept evidence in court so real terrorists don’t get let off for lack of admissable evidence.”
The figures showed almost 230 people are arrested for terrorism offences every year. Between September 11 2001, and March 31 2008, there were 1,471 arrests for terrorism. Of these, 521 resulted in a charge, with 222 people charged with terror offences, and 118 charged with terror-related offences.
Of the 340 people charged in relation to terrorism, 196 were eventually convicted – 102 for terrorism offences and 94 for terrorism-related offences.
So of 1,471 arrests, 102 were convicted under terror laws.
Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty, said it was “worrying” that “the overwhelming majority” of those arrested were not guilty of any charge.
By Gabriel Milland | May 14, 2009
JUST one in 14 people arrested for alleged terror offences is convicted, official figures showed yesterday.
Government data showed that less than a third of those arrested are even charged with a terror-related offence.
The figures are a major embarrassment to ministers who fought a long battle to increase the time terror suspects can be held without charge. Currently, suspects can be held for up to 42 days.
They also come just weeks after raids on a supposed major terror plot in Liverpool and Manchester resulted in no one being charged.
Shadow security minister Baroness Neville-Jones said courts should get the right to use phone-tap intelligence as evidence. She said: “The Government needs to allow intercept evidence in court so real terrorists don’t get let off for lack of admissable evidence.”
The figures showed almost 230 people are arrested for terrorism offences every year. Between September 11 2001, and March 31 2008, there were 1,471 arrests for terrorism. Of these, 521 resulted in a charge, with 222 people charged with terror offences, and 118 charged with terror-related offences.
Of the 340 people charged in relation to terrorism, 196 were eventually convicted – 102 for terrorism offences and 94 for terrorism-related offences.
So of 1,471 arrests, 102 were convicted under terror laws.
Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty, said it was “worrying” that “the overwhelming majority” of those arrested were not guilty of any charge.
Filed under
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Manchester
by Winter Patriot
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Daily Times : Pak students shifted to hardened criminals’ cell in UK
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Pak students shifted to hardened criminals’ cell in UK
daily times monitor | Saturday, May 16, 2009
LAHORE: Three Pakistani students arrested in the UK have been shifted to the hardened criminals’ cell in the jail, Dunya News reported on Friday. The men were among a group of 12 picked up in a highly publicised counter-terrorism operation across northern England earlier this month. The channel quoted the British interior secretary as saying that the investigation was under progress against the students, Tariq Rehman, Abdul Wahab and Shoaib Khan.
daily times monitor | Saturday, May 16, 2009
LAHORE: Three Pakistani students arrested in the UK have been shifted to the hardened criminals’ cell in the jail, Dunya News reported on Friday. The men were among a group of 12 picked up in a highly publicised counter-terrorism operation across northern England earlier this month. The channel quoted the British interior secretary as saying that the investigation was under progress against the students, Tariq Rehman, Abdul Wahab and Shoaib Khan.
Filed under
Abdul Wahab Khan,
Shoaib Khan,
Tariq Rehman
by Winter Patriot
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APP : Lawyer attack denial of bail to four Pak students
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Lawyer attack denial of bail to four Pak students
May 14, 2009
LONDON, May 14 (APP)- Lawyer representing four of the ten Pakistan students facing deportation after they were arrested in anti-terror raids has spoken against the denial of bail to his clients.
Rochdale based lawyer Amjad Malik for four of them said his clients were shocked at the decision as they are eager to carry on with their studies.
Their application for bail was turned down by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission.
Barrister Malik said; “The CPS found no shred of evidence against these men yet they are being treated like criminals by being detained at a high security prison as Category A detainees.
“These men who have never been in trouble with the law are now having to roam around with murderers and rapists. We were told the Home Secretary is convinced that there is concern they may abscond or that they will carry on with ‘Islamist extremist’ activities”, he said.
Barrister Amjad Malik went on to say; “We want to now what constitutes as Islamist activities. Is it because they wear beards, go to mosque and read their prayers and because they have other Muslim friends who they meet up with and socialise with as do many people in the UK?
“The clients are really upset about the decision as one of my clients has missed a major exam and another client has an exam coming up.
“All they wanted was to be able to carry on with their studies as their families in Pakistan have paid thousands of pounds to send their sons to the UK for decent education.”
The students were amongst 12 who were recently arrested in north west England as terrorist suspects but subsequently released without charge.
They are now facing deportation by order of the Home Secretary, which ten of them are appealing. The next hearing will take place on July 27.
May 14, 2009
LONDON, May 14 (APP)- Lawyer representing four of the ten Pakistan students facing deportation after they were arrested in anti-terror raids has spoken against the denial of bail to his clients.
Rochdale based lawyer Amjad Malik for four of them said his clients were shocked at the decision as they are eager to carry on with their studies.
Their application for bail was turned down by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission.
Barrister Malik said; “The CPS found no shred of evidence against these men yet they are being treated like criminals by being detained at a high security prison as Category A detainees.
“These men who have never been in trouble with the law are now having to roam around with murderers and rapists. We were told the Home Secretary is convinced that there is concern they may abscond or that they will carry on with ‘Islamist extremist’ activities”, he said.
Barrister Amjad Malik went on to say; “We want to now what constitutes as Islamist activities. Is it because they wear beards, go to mosque and read their prayers and because they have other Muslim friends who they meet up with and socialise with as do many people in the UK?
“The clients are really upset about the decision as one of my clients has missed a major exam and another client has an exam coming up.
“All they wanted was to be able to carry on with their studies as their families in Pakistan have paid thousands of pounds to send their sons to the UK for decent education.”
The students were amongst 12 who were recently arrested in north west England as terrorist suspects but subsequently released without charge.
They are now facing deportation by order of the Home Secretary, which ten of them are appealing. The next hearing will take place on July 27.
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Telegraph : Pakistani men 'part of al-Qaeda network planning attacks in Britain'
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Pakistani men 'part of al-Qaeda network planning attacks in Britain'
By Duncan Gardham, Security Correspondent | May 13, 2009
Ten Pakistani men released without charge after an investigation into an alleged plot to bomb shopping centres in Manchester were part of an al-Qaeda network planning attacks in Britain and should be deported, a tribunal has heard.
The men were arrested on April 8 after former Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick entered Downing Street with details of the operation against the men visible under his arm.
None of the men were charged with any crime but the government launched an attempt to have the men deported. ?THIS OK? [sic!]
Their lawyers are objecting to the deportation orders, arguing that they should be freed to continue their studies.
Robin Tam QC for the Home Secretary told the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) in London: "All the applicants were members of a UK based network linked to al-Qaeda involved in attack planning.
"Each therefore poses a risk to national security and deportation would be considered in the national good."
Mr Tam said there was a "high risk they would re-engage in their former activity to the detriment of national security" and there was a risk they would abscond if granted bail.
All the group were "young single men with no close family ties to the UK and each claims to have been a student", Mr Tam added.
Three of the men, Abdul Wahab Khan, Shoaib Khan and Tariq ur-Rehman, waived their rights to anonymity at the hearing.
The SIAC panel considered evidence behind closed doors before refusing bail for the three named men, along with a fourth, "XC."
Sibghat Kadri QC for Abdul Wahab Khan, 26, said the Pakistani High Commissioner in London had claimed the operation against the men was a "hoax" and added: "Other than what he was told upon arrest, that he was suspected to be a terrorist, he has never been informed of the substance of any allegations against him.
"During various interviews he was subjected to intensive interrogation. He was asked mostly about his association with friends, going to the mosque, meeting various friends and taking photographs."
He added that despite the police seizing computers, a TV and clothing which were subjected to forensic examination, "not a shred of evidence was found."
He added: "This case does not involve the liberty of the applicant but the wider question of trust that the community can repose in the security services in a multi-racial society and the subsequent faith in the Secretary of State to make a decision based on justice rather than fear of political failure."
By Duncan Gardham, Security Correspondent | May 13, 2009
Ten Pakistani men released without charge after an investigation into an alleged plot to bomb shopping centres in Manchester were part of an al-Qaeda network planning attacks in Britain and should be deported, a tribunal has heard.
The men were arrested on April 8 after former Assistant Commissioner Bob Quick entered Downing Street with details of the operation against the men visible under his arm.
None of the men were charged with any crime but the government launched an attempt to have the men deported. ?THIS OK? [sic!]
Their lawyers are objecting to the deportation orders, arguing that they should be freed to continue their studies.
Robin Tam QC for the Home Secretary told the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) in London: "All the applicants were members of a UK based network linked to al-Qaeda involved in attack planning.
"Each therefore poses a risk to national security and deportation would be considered in the national good."
Mr Tam said there was a "high risk they would re-engage in their former activity to the detriment of national security" and there was a risk they would abscond if granted bail.
All the group were "young single men with no close family ties to the UK and each claims to have been a student", Mr Tam added.
Three of the men, Abdul Wahab Khan, Shoaib Khan and Tariq ur-Rehman, waived their rights to anonymity at the hearing.
The SIAC panel considered evidence behind closed doors before refusing bail for the three named men, along with a fourth, "XC."
Sibghat Kadri QC for Abdul Wahab Khan, 26, said the Pakistani High Commissioner in London had claimed the operation against the men was a "hoax" and added: "Other than what he was told upon arrest, that he was suspected to be a terrorist, he has never been informed of the substance of any allegations against him.
"During various interviews he was subjected to intensive interrogation. He was asked mostly about his association with friends, going to the mosque, meeting various friends and taking photographs."
He added that despite the police seizing computers, a TV and clothing which were subjected to forensic examination, "not a shred of evidence was found."
He added: "This case does not involve the liberty of the applicant but the wider question of trust that the community can repose in the security services in a multi-racial society and the subsequent faith in the Secretary of State to make a decision based on justice rather than fear of political failure."
Filed under
Abdul Wahab Khan,
Bob Quick,
bomb,
Manchester,
Shoaib Khan,
Tariq Rehman
by Winter Patriot
on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 |
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