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Not much has been heard from British Muslim leader Omar Bakri Muhammad since he fled to Lebanon from Britian soon after the July terrorist attacks. Always a vocal proponent of terrorism, Muhammad has kept a low-profile since leaving London, but has recently resurfaced in an interview conducted by the paper Asharq Alawsat:
Q) Before leaving London, did you expect that you would be prevented from returning?(A) Before leaving London, I held a news conference. It was recorded. I bid farewell to all our young men in London and kissed them goodbye. I left the news conference after saying that I would be leaving the day after tomorrow. I did not run away or disappear. I left via Heathrow Airport where security measures are very strict and flew on the Lebanese Middle East Airlines. I decided to leave because the Muslim community in Britain is considered the voice, ears, and eyes of the British Government. This community allows itself to join the British intelligence, security, and army. Therefore, I consider them responsible before God because of their odd fatwas.
(Q) Do you blame the Muslim community in Britain?
(A) No, I accuse those recruited by the British Government and they have to account for their actions before God. Today after my Muslim brothers were killed, they turned against the others and the British Government accused them of being anti-Semitic. I expect they will receive blows on the head. They sold out their Muslim brothers and they themselves will be sold tomorrow.
Always a master of equivocation, Muhammad goes on to endorse jihad, with some caveats...
(Q) But you said that you are against killing innocent people and have nothing to do with the Al-Qaeda Organization. Now you are calling for jihad. How do you explain your position?(A) I have often repeated that I am against the killing of innocent people anywhere in the world but who are the innocent? I keep the answer to myself.
(Q) Who do you define as innocent?
(A) The innocent people are specified by Islam. I denounce killing innocent people regardless of who kills them. However, who are the innocent? I do not have to explain this issue.
On a far less serious note, Muhammad discusses with his interviewer his future plans:
(Q) What are your plans in Lebanon? What will you do?(A) First of all, I will rent an apartment to live in. Perhaps I will later buy a mule-driven cart and sell kerosene.
(Q) Seriously. Do you have any religious or educational plan for the future?
(A) I have a large belly. I will start by reducing my weight.
Posted by Patrick at September 27, 2005 1:54 PM
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Omar is such a geek like a lot of the so back-seat Jihadists. I saw a program on him by the BBC ages ago, him with huge NHS glasses, pushing round a trolley round a cash n carry. Using the cheapest photocoping deal. Seemed a just a normal, fairly amiable bearded geek. It's just the leafelets he was handing out weren't exactly pro-British.
The comments about him being against killing of innocent civilians, yet in the same breath asking who are the innocent, is an endemic problem of definitions in the Muslim community. It seems Omar believes that those Londoners weren't innocent... Twisted f****! I knew one of them. She didn't have a clue about politics.
Posted by: DrunkenBlogger![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.jihadwatch.org/nav-commenters.gif)
at September 27, 2005 3:39 PM
It was interesting to read the interview in full. And nice to know Bakri is not only not planning to come back, but wants his wife and children to join him in Lebanon. We are well shut of him.
On the same site as the interview, incidentally, there is an article by Mona Eltahawy that seems to me to be a step in the right direction for Muslims.
Posted by: Aardvark at September 27, 2005 6:24 PM
Methinks, reading between the lines, that when the fat, bearded one uses the word innocent, it precludes all non-Muslims. After all, anyone foolish enough to live outside the peaceful sphere of Islam must be a Jew, or a friend of a Jew and therefore must be keeled.
Posted by: islamophobic pride at September 27, 2005 7:10 PM
Bakri said "...I bid farewell to all our young men in London and kissed them goodbye." Anybody else find this disturbing?
Posted by: Bohemond_1069 at September 27, 2005 9:38 PM
"...but wants his wife and children to join him in Lebanon. .."
On condition that her Majesty will keep sending them their regular welfare-cheque in the mail...
Posted by: sheik yer'mami at September 27, 2005 9:57 PM
Robert or Hugh:
Do you know anything about the following? Thanks in advance for any insight.
"In a lengthy statement that will send shockwaves around the world, John Loftus, a terrorism expert and a former prosecutor for the US Justice Department, has publically revealed that the so called mastermind of the 7/7 London Bombings, Haroon Rashid Aswat, is a British ‘Intelligence Asset’."
"Former Justice Dept. prosecutor and terror expert, John Loftus, revealed that the so-called Al-Muhajiroun group, based in London had formed during the Kosovo crisis, during which Fundamentalist Muslim Leaders (Or what is now referred to as Al Qaeda) were recruited by MI6 to fight in Kosovo.
Loftus stated that "...back in the late 1990s, the leaders all worked for British intelligence in Kosovo. Believe it or not, British intelligence actually hired some Al-Qaeda guys to help defend the Muslim rights in Albania and in Kosovo. That's when Al-Muhajiroun got started."
In a blistering attack on MI6 John Loftus went on to spell out that British Intelligence and the US Dept of Justice had protected Haroon Rashid Aswat:
"Back in 1999 he came to America. The Justice Department wanted to indict him in Seattle because him and his buddy were trying to set up a terrorist training school in Oregon... we've just learned that the headquarters of the US Justice Department ordered the Seattle prosecutors not to touch Aswat... apparently Aswat was working for British intelligence."
http://www.newcriminologist.co.uk/news.asp?id=1124824797
at September 28, 2005 3:32 PM
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