Meet the new boss, same as the old boss? From the BBC, with thanks to Shiva:
In foot-high letters and in black and red, the words "a new beginning for the mosque" were printed on a banner draped from the second-floor window. The incoming trustees of Finsbury Park mosque could not have made their intentions more clear.There was a heavy police presence as over 200 Muslim men, many of them dressed in suits, attended Friday prayers - the first under the new regime at the mosque.
The khutbah, or sermon, took as its theme how Muslims need to connect better with the rest of humanity.
The new trustees, co-ordinated by the Muslim Association of Britain, had seized the mosque last Saturday, reclaiming it for the mainstream Muslim community in north London.
The Board of Trustees has always been the legal owner of the Central North London Mosque, informally known as Finsbury Park Mosque.
But their power was eroded by the controversial cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri. One senior member of the Muslim Association of Britain said it had been "hijacked by Hamza's mob".
Mr Abu Hamza turned the mosque into the public face of the extremist jihadi movement in Britain.
The former Guantanamo detainee Feroz Abassi has written about his time there. He describes how he was encouraged to go to Afghanistan to attend a training camp.
Richard Reid, the failed shoebomber, also passed through the mosque, as did Djamel Beghal, who is currently on trial in France for plotting to bomb the US embassy in Paris.
Now the extremists have been cleared out of the offices and the rooms where they slept.
Dr Azzam Tamimi, of the Muslim Association of Britain, says the plan is to outnumber the extremists to persuade them to stay away.
"For the first few Fridays we will be organising for our members from across London to come and pray here so that we have a strong majority. We will not tolerate anyone who will seek to abuse the mosque," he said.
Azzam Tamimi is, of course, the great moderate who has announced that he would blow himself up (presumably along with a roomful of civilian non-combatants) in Israel if he, uh, finds the time.
Muslims in suits? Seems to be the new thing. The new "moderate" Muslims. When you scratch 'em, however, you find the same old thing. A new face when the old one becomes disreputable. The new crowd will replace the "extremists." Does Azzam Tamimi mean the "ones who have hijacked a 'great and peaceful religion?'"
Of course Tamimi is not an extremist. Still . . . he would explode himself to kill Jews and achieve martyrdom. It deals with Israel however, you must understand. It is a entirely different case, occupied land, blah, blah, Zionists, blah, etc.
Same old song, new singers. [Music up] "Tell me no stories, tell me no lies, a man got hit with a bag of taqiyya right between the eyes."
Fortunately, this hasn't escaped the UK press . .
In today's Times Online (www.timesonline.co.uk)
The Sunday Times - Britain
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-1481677,00.html
February 13, 2005
Hamas link to London mosque
Nick Fielding and Abul Taher
A MUSLIM leader appointed to help to run the recently reopened Finsbury Park mosque in north London is a former military commander of Hamas, the Palestinian terrorist organisation. Mohammed Kassem Sawalha is one of five trustees appointed to give the mosque a fresh start.
The mosque was closed last year after becoming a centre of Islamic militancy under Abu Hamza al-Masri, the radical cleric facing charges in Britain and America.
Sawalha’s link with Hamas emerged after he was named as a co-conspirator in an American court case involving racketeering and conspiracy. Last week the cleric, who arrived in Britain 15 years ago and has been given indefinite leave to remain, said that he still supported Hamas, notorious for its suicide attacks in Israel.
However, he said he was committed to peace in Britain and would help to run the mosque in an open and inclusive way. “I am supported by the Muslim community and have been working ever since I arrived for that community,” he said.
Asked whether he supported the military activities of Hamas, he replied: “I have no comment on the question of military activity. I am working here to give a new direction to this mosque and break with the past.”
According to US court documents, Sawalha was a leading militant in the early 1990s “in charge of Hamas terrorist operations within the West Bank”. The documents, from the federal court in Chicago, claim he met two of the three “conspirators” accused of laundering millions of dollars to finance Hamas activities, including the purchase of weapons.
The purpose of the first meeting with the men was alleged to have been to discuss revitalising Hamas’s operations. He met one of the men a second time in London in January 1993. Sawalha allegedly directed him “to provide money to various Hamas members and provided him with contact information”.
Although Sawalha is named as a co-conspirator, he has not been charged. Asked last week if he faced arrest in the United States, Sawalha said: “I have not tried to travel there.”
Sawalha was president of the Muslim Association of Britain which is believed to have links to the Muslim Brotherhood, one of the oldest radical Islamic groups.
Abu Hamza is in prison facing trial in Britain on 16 charges, including incitement to murder, intending to stir up racial hatred and being in possession of a document “likely to be useful” to someone plotting terrorism. He is also awaiting extradition hearings on a warrant issued by the US Department of Justice.
Following his arrest a group of his supporters tried to take over the mosque, but after extensive discussion between the surviving trustees of the charity that runs the mosque — including Mohammed Sarwar, the Labour MP, the police and the Charity Commission, which had closed it — five new trustees were appointed.
Last night Sarwar, MP for Glasgow Govan, said he would remain a trustee despite being told of Sawalha’s links to Hamas. He was happy with the way the mosque was being run by the new trustees: “The Muslim community is delighted that the Abu Hamza regime is gone and the mosque is open.”
Barry Norman, the Metropolitan police chief superintendent who has been working closely with the trustees, said: “I am aware of the background, but if I took the view that I’m not working with this or that person I’d end up spending my whole life in my office.”
Additional reporting: Jessica Berry
when they're lips move they lie....“I am supported by the Muslim community and have been working ever since I arrived for that community,” he said.
how long will it be before this mosque turns out another participant?
if the U.S. has evidence on this clown they should arrest him now and any clonies as well to save innocent lives somewhere in the world.
if the U.K. could prove anything on him, arrest him and his clonies.
Shiva- nice article you sent in here....you do puzzle me however with some of your posts.....am familiar w/your history.
New Start, eh?
Yeah, lessons learnt in having anti-dhimmis catrch up with jihadi propaganda will now be put into practice. Taqiyya shall be fine tuned. Dhimmis shall be further misguiided. The project will proceed with a sleeker, more silent engine....
But... they are wearing SUITS.
Azzam Tamimi should be detained to protect him from himself
"announced that he would blow himself up"
Above link is worth checking,
I am a fan of Tim Sebastion
hadithher2
Puzzled???
so am I
More bad news from England (which is just full of bad news,all of which is dutifully covered up by Blair}
Breaking news in the UK tonight also revolves around those fun-loving Pakistanis , and bombs :
Pakistani Charged with Explosive Plan
He was previously arrested,charged and released In Pakistan. But Pakistan is the Bush/Blair partner in the "war on terror". LOL.
He probably has 900,000 relatives living in the UK already , who will put pressure on Blair to release this mad muslim bomber & give him a big cash payment to apologise for hurting his feelings.
OT but good news: The Shiite coalition did less well than expected in the Iraqi elections:
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,12238911-26618,00.html
They got 48 percent, when they had been expected to poll more than 60 percent. 52 percent voted for various secularist parties.
It appears that Abu Hamza al-mazri was not a good steward of the practice of taqiyya while dominating the Finsbury Park Mosque. Maybe the practices of deception will go deeper underground allowing for a more subtle practice of the never ending struggle (jihad)and determination of muslims to undermine the foundations of British rule. They will probably not promulgate their intentions so openly which may be more sinister, and less obvious than that of Abu HamzA al-mazri. Watch for the advocacies of multiculturalism, and secularism, as well as the never ending cry that muslims are victims of antisemtism, the latter already being put into law by EU countries such as the Netherlands in an effort keep their countries from being critical of Islam. And the beat goes on.
over 200 Muslim men, many of them dressed in suits
All dressed up with no one to blow up!
The khutbah, or sermon, took as its theme how Muslims need to connect better with the rest of humanity.
That’s it, they just need to “connect better”.
Do not even begin think that their pedophile non-prophesying prophet and his band of murderers has anything to do with it.
If the Moslems ever had an original though, it would die of loneliness.
Hey Mr Spencer Im really sorry for the email I sent you on the justayoungsta account
Im really sorry and It was a prank me and my cuz played involving you, sina, ahmed, and sam shouman.
He's not a Catholic and Im not a Muslims and we're really sorry for what happened.
It was a stupid joke that went too far and we're really really sorry.
Im really sorry for what happened Mr. Spencer
Me and my cousin were acting stupid and did not want this prank to go this far.
We are really sorry.
we both sent you sorry letters and apologized dozens of times
When you posted our email it really hit us that this was messed up and we should end this nonsense.
Again we are really sorry
Please forgive us, we want to part in any religious conflict. Please we were just acting stupid and want nothing to do with either of you guys.
Moderate muslim = oxymoron.
I am supported by the Muslim community and have been working ever since I arrived for that community,” he said.
WORKING??? It wouldnt surprise in the least if this terrorist and his family is on benefits, like most of the islamofascists that successive governments has let in into the UK.
Posted by: Mackie - February 13, 2005 01:59 PM
Maybe the practices of deception will go deeper underground allowing for a more subtle practice of the never ending struggle (jihad)and determination of muslims to undermine the foundations of British rule.
No doubt of it. I have always said that clerics like Hamza, Qatada and others, are definitely on our side, even though they may not think so. These people were waking the rest of the population to the dangers of islam in the West. Now, with the forced silencing of these individuals, the insidious islamisation of Europe can gather pace, actively supported by the BBC and the likes.
...and Im not a Muslims....we want to part in any religious conflict....we were just acting stupid and want nothing to do with either of you guys.... Posted by Sorry Spencer & Posted by justayoungsta16
I don't know, but that appears to be typical Moslem intellect at work...
Well, war is deceit, afterall. Yes, the fire-breathing, hate-spewing Abu Hamzas and ilk, were revolting and shocking, but at least they were being true to themselves, and giving us an honest view of what Islam is really about. This stuff about wearing suits and blah blah about new beginnings and connecting, is deceit. A new way of doing things perhaps but same purpose.
Dear Ummagumma,
I'm sure they are heartfelt apologies, and I am happy to accept them. However, as with all deceivers, it's hard to know which version of their persona to believe. In view of the deceptiveness involved and some other aspects of the exchanges regarding the debate that these individuals tried to influence, I don't think I will pursue that debate.
Cordially
Robert Spencer