Police facing ‘toxic mix’ of mental health issues and online extremism

July 7, 2021 Article

Counter-terrorism police are facing “a toxic mix” of mental health issues and online radicalisation as the country comes out of lockdown, a senior officer has warned.

Commander Richard Smith, head of the Metropolitan Police Counter-Terrorism Command, said young people in particular had been left at greater risk of online radicalisation during lockdown.

Giving evidence to the London Assembly Police and Crime Committee, he said: “One of the impacts of the pandemic has been to leave young people at greater risk of radicalisation and vulnerable people at greater risk of radicalisation online.

“It’s only as we unlock and activity then rises that we will see what that has meant for them as we get more referrals into (anti-radicalisation scheme) Prevent.

“That goes alongside what is now becoming better documented in terms of the impact of the pandemic and lockdown on people’s mental health generally.

“I’m not saying that mental illness and terrorist ideology are corroborated necessarily one way or the other, but they’re certainly not mutually exclusive.

“There’s a real toxic mix that we may see as we come out of the pandemic in terms of the numbers of people who have been at risk of radicalisation.

“I am therefore very keen to see the number of referrals into Prevent increase so that we can engage with those people and direct them onto more productive pathways.”

This week UK counter-terrorism police have teamed up with Netmums to provide advice to parents on how to spot the signs of radicalisation and where to get help.

Law enforcement are growing increasingly concerned about the number of under-18s being groomed by extremists, particularly on the far right.

In the year to March 2021, 13% of suspects arrested for terrorism offences were aged under 18, compared to 5% the previous year. Children were also the only age group to show an increase in this period.

Of the 21 children arrested up to March 2021, 15, or 71%, were linked to extreme right-wing beliefs, and the proportion has been growing since 2015.

In that year, less than 20% of under-24s were held for far right beliefs, rising to 60% in 2020.

Commander Smith said that while the number of arrests for suspected terrorist offences had dropped during the coronavirus lockdowns, this was due to a reduction in opportunities to commit crimes rather than a reduction in threat.

The terror threat for the UK has been substantial since February, and he said it remains at that level.

He told the committee: “In terms of the threat itself I have seen no reduction. Certainly as we come out of lockdown there is a sense that the tempo of activity has risen.

“We are now seeing the tempo of activity rising and therefore the tempo of our activity countering it rising commensurately.”

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Categories: Corona Virus, Mental Health, News, online extremism

Bosnian genocide survivor recalls joy of birdsong after fleeing conflict for UK

July 6, 2021 Article

An architect has recalled spending his first “beautiful” days in Newcastle after fleeing his war-torn Bosnian town as a schoolboy to escape the genocide.

Smajo Beso, now 36, said he heard birdsong for the first time in years after arriving in the north-east of England on July 19 1994, after Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic ordered troops to execute mostly Muslim men and boys.

Mr Beso and his mother and siblings spent a month in a Croatian refugee camp after fleeing their town of Stolac.

His father was among the many males, aged between around 13 and 90, who had been rounded up by guards storming Stolac a year earlier, before being granted refuge in Newcastle.

Local people then successfully campaigned to have the family reunited in Newcastle.
Speaking on the anniversary of the Bosnian genocide, Mr Beso, who describes himself as equal parts Bosnian and Geordie, told the PA news agency: “Coming here was amazing.
“I remember it was beautiful weather and silence, not hearing bombs and shells and screaming and cries.

“The first thing I noticed was how different it was to Bosnia.

“Coming from a war zone – that shock, the contrast, not hearing bombs and explosions, hearing birds for the first time in years – that shock was so vivid.”

Mr Beso described how his first real understanding of the impact of war was when a Serbian friend turned against him.

He then saw relatives killed, men rounded up and buildings destroyed.
“War might be an abstract concept for a young boy,” he said.
“It might be something you see in films and TV and are impressed by, but when you see the crater a shell leaves behind, or the explosion when you are a few metres away and your ears are ringing and you’re disorientated – then you know what war is.”

Mr Beso said his most defining moment was when his mother sat him and his brother and sister down, the day her sister – his aunt – was fatally wounded by a Croatian bomb, and told them to reject hatred.

He said: “She said the best way to resist those trying to kill us is not to become hateful like them.
“If my mam had chosen the easy route … the most soothing thing would be to direct all our anger to them.
“But she chose the most courageous thing.
“It had the most impact on my life.”

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Categories: Bosnia, Bosnian genocide, News, Radovan Karadzic, Smajo Beso, Srebrenica, Yugoslavia

Islamist extremist motive considered by investigators probing Germany attack

June 30, 2021 Article

German investigators said that an Islamist extremist motivation for last week’s fatal knife attack in Wuerzburg appears likely, but they have not so far found any propaganda or other extremist material.

They also plan more checks on the suspect’s mental health.

Friday’s assault in and outside a store in the centre of the Bavarian city left three women dead and another six people seriously injured.

The suspect, a 24-year-old Somali man, was shot in the leg by police and arrested after people surrounded him and tried to hold him at bay with chairs and sticks.

Officials have said they believe the suspect was a lone assailant.

He was sent to jail on Saturday pending a possible indictment.

Bavarian extremism and terrorism investigators took over the case on Saturday because an Islamist background appears likely, Munich prosecutors and Bavaria’s state criminal police office said in a statement.

They said that is supported by witnesses’ account that he twice shouted “Allahu akbar”, the Arabic phrase for “God is great”, and also referred to “jihad” after his arrest.

Investigators are still evaluating objects that were seized at his accommodation, including two mobile phones, but have not yet found signs of propaganda or extremist material, they added.

They also plan to order a psychiatric evaluation of the suspect to determine whether he can be held criminally responsible for his actions and whether he needs to be sent to a psychiatric hospital or rehabilitation clinic.

Prosecutors have said there were two incidents earlier this year that resulted in him being sent briefly to a psychiatric hospital.

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Categories: Bavaria, Islamist extremist, News, terrorist attack, Wuerzberg

Man facing terror charges diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, court told

June 24, 2021 Article

A man accused of preparing acts of terrorism and claiming “all Muslims must die” has been diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, a court has heard.

Richard Smith, 28, is charged with engaging in preparations “with the intention of committing acts of terrorism” between August 2018 and November 2019 at addresses in Aberdeen and elsewhere in Scotland.

He is accused of possessing and making explosive substances and powders and possessing a quantity of military-style clothing and weapons.

Smith is charged with conducting online research into the manufacture of explosive substances, improvised detonators and improvised explosive devices.

It is also alleged he created and possessed texts, videos and guides relating to matters such as paramilitary survival and resistance, combat techniques and “advancing anti-Muslim, neo Nazi and other racist causes”.

He is further accused of collecting or recording information “of a kind likely to be useful to someone committing or preparing an act of terrorism”, relating to matters such as the manufacture and use of firearms and other weaponry and the practice of guerrilla warfare.

One charge is contrary to the Terrorism Act 2000 and the other comes under the Terrorism Act 2006.

Smith, who denies all charges against him, is also accused of texting a relative stating that “all Muslims must die” and sending images associated with the Nazi party and messages containing “grossly offensive” language to another person.

He also faces a charge under the Poisons Act 1972 and one under the Explosive Substances Act 1883.

At a hearing at the High Court in Glasgow on Thursday, Ronnie Renucci QC, representing Smith, said his client was diagnosed with Asperger’s after the defence was given authority to have him examined by an expert.

He said: “I became concerned at his presentation and wondered whether or not he was on the autistic spectrum.

“A supplementary report is now required as to the impact of that diagnosis on Mr Smith’s behaviour and the relation to the charges that he faces and the amount of material that he had accumulated.”

Lord Matthews asked: “As far as Asperger’s is concerned is that likely to give rise of a question of fitness for trial?”

Mr Renucci replied: “I’m not anticipating that.”

Smith did not attend the hearing in person.

The case was continued to a further hearing on August 13.

Credit: PA News

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Categories: Asperger's syndrome, News, Richard Smith, Terror charges

Israeli foreign minister to visit UAE

June 21, 2021 Article

Israel’s new foreign minister will head to the United Arab Emirates next week for the first-ever visit by a top Israeli diplomat to the Gulf country, the Foreign Ministry said.

Foreign minister Yair Lapid’s visit comes after the two countries normalised relations last year in an agreement brokered by the Trump administration, the first of four similar deals with Arab states that had long shunned Israel over its conflict with the Palestinians.

Both Israel’s new government and the Biden administration have said they hope to reach similar accords with other Arab states.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry said Mr Lapid will visit the UAE on June 29-30, and will inaugurate an Israeli embassy in Abu Dhabi and a consulate in Dubai.

Mr Lapid was the driving force behind a new Israeli government sworn in just over a week ago that ended prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s record 12-year rule.

Mr Netanyahu had held up the agreements with the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco as among his biggest achievements.

Israelis have flocked to the UAE since the agreement was reached to enjoy futuristic Dubai.

The UAE is a major travel hub, and the agreement has made it much easier for Israelis to travel further afield.

The two countries have also signed a raft of agreements to co-operate in commerce, technology and other fields.

Israel’s i24NEWS announced it has secured a broadcast licence to operate in the UAE and will open its own bureau in Dubai Media City. The 24-hour channel, which aims to cover international news from an Israeli perspective, is already carried by the UAE’s Etisalat and du cable providers.

Shortly after the Israel-UAE accord was reached, the Trump administration authorised the sale of 50 advanced F-35 fighter jets to the UAE, which would make it only the second country in the Middle East, after Israel, to acquire them.

The Biden administration put that agreement on hold in January after it drew fierce criticism from Democrats in Congress, who argued that the sale had unfolded too quickly and without sufficient transparency. But in April, the administration decided to proceed with the 23 billion dollar arms sale, saying it would work with the UAE to ensure adherence to human rights standards and the laws of war.

The Palestinians strongly criticised the normalisation agreements because they broke down a long-standing Arab consensus that recognition of Israel should only be granted in return for concessions in the peace process, which has been stalled for more than a decade.

Even before the normalisation agreements, Gulf Arab countries had been quietly cultivating closer ties with Israel over their shared concerns about Iran. Senior Israeli officials reportedly paid secret visits to the UAE and other Arab countries in the years before ties were normalised.

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Categories: Abraham Accords, Israel, Lapid, News, U.A.E

Timeline: Usman Khan’s path to murder

June 7, 2021 Article

Usman Khan’s path to his death on London Bridge at the hands of police marksmen followed a long history of involvement in extremism.

He killed his two victims at Fishmongers’ Hall at an event which had been intended to celebrate prisoners who had taken steps on the path to reform.

Here is a timeline of his life which ended after his fatal journey to London.

– March 10 1991: Usman Khan is born in Stoke-on-Trent.

– 2008 Khan begins preaching on behalf of terrorist organisation al-Muhajiroun in his home town, and distributing extremist leaflets. The house where he is staying is raided by police, but no action follows.

– 2010: Aged 19, Khan is convicted of terrorism offences for his role trying to set up an extremist training camp in Pakistan and spends the next eight years in jail.

– January 2011: While behind bars, Khan suggests he has access to a weapon and would “do someone in the eye or neck” and wants to die and go to paradise.

– March 2011: Khan and others are involved in an attack on another prisoner to shouts of “Allahu Akbar”.

– November 2011: He shouts during the two-minute silence for Armistice Day.

– June 2012: Khan recites a poem which includes the line “cut off the kuffar’s (non-believer’s) head”.

– May 2013: A stockpile of chemicals is found in Khan’s cell which would not have been capable of making a bomb but is still considered “very concerning” by prison staff.

– November 2013: A Church of England chaplain is injured during an assault by Khan on another prisoner. On the same day, a razor blade is found in Khan’s cell.

– March 2017: Now at HMP Whitemoor, Khan talks about his Muslim faith with Michael Adebowale, who murdered Fusilier Lee Rigby.

– June 2017: Khan is considered to be an “influential” terrorist prisoner involved in “extremist bullying”.

– August 2017: He is reported as laughing or cheering about the Barcelona terror attack.

– November 2017: He applies for his first course with Learning Together, studying creative writing. He goes on to complete a series of courses with the scheme at HMP Whitemoor.

– April 2018: A psychologist’s report finds that Khan is polite to staff, well involved in his education and in one incident stopped other prisoners getting involved when two other inmates were fighting.

– June 2018: While Khan’s behaviour has apparently begun to improve, a prison report warns: “He may be behaving in a deceptively compliant manner in order to facilitate his release.”

– October 2018: Intelligence on Khan suggests he will “return to his old ways”, interpreted as meaning terrorism. However, he has also engaged positively with the Learning Together scheme.

– December 2018: Khan is released from jail on various licence conditions and lives in Stafford. He is visited regularly by probation staff and the police, who are not told of intelligence concerns that he may be faking compliance.

– March 2019: Khan maintains contact with Learning Together and is involved with filming a video for the organisation.

– June 2019: He attends a Learning Together event at one of his former prisons, HMP Whitemoor.

– August 2019: Khan is discussed at a Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (Mappa) meeting of probation, police and security officials. A decision is apparently made that Khan can travel to London for the Learning Together anniversary event at Fishmongers’ Hall in November, but there is no written record made of what is said.

– October 2019: Khan moves to his own flat and spends hours in the darkened apartment playing video games and watching DVDs. He has trouble getting employment.

– November 19: At another Mappa meeting Khan’s trip to London is discussed only in terms of logistics, not the risk Khan poses. MI5 said the trip would have provided useful information on whether they could close their file on him, but failed to provide surveillance as intended.

– November 28: Khan gets his hair and beard trimmed in preparation for the attack, and at Stafford market buys the knives he will use to kill Jack Merritt and Saskia Jones.

– November 29: Khan murders the two Cambridge graduates and injures three others at Fishmongers’ Hall, before he is shot dead by police on London Bridge.

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Categories: Fishmongers' Hall, London Bridge, News, Timeline, Usman Khan

Uighur exiles describe forced abortions and torture in China

June 5, 2021 Article

Three Uighurs who fled from China to Turkey have described forced abortions and torture by Chinese authorities in the far western Xinjiang region.

They were speaking ahead of giving evidence to a people’s tribunal in London that is investigating if Beijing’s actions against ethnic Uighurs amount to genocide.

One woman said she was forced to have an abortion when she was six and half months pregnant, a former doctor spoke of draconian birth control policies, and a man alleged he was “tortured day and night” by Chinese soldiers while he was imprisoned in the remote border region.

They spoke to the Associated Press before giving by videolink to the independent UK tribunal, which is expected to draw dozens of witnesses when it opens four days of hearings on Friday.

The tribunal, which does not have UK Government backing, will be chaired by prominent human rights lawyer Geoffrey Nice, who led the prosecution of ex-Serbian president Slobodan Milosevic and worked with the International Criminal Court.

While the tribunal’s judgment is not binding on any government, organisers hope the process of publicly laying out evidence will compel international action to tackle growing concerns about alleged abuses in Xinjiang against the Uighurs, a largely Muslim ethnic group.

One witness, mother-of-four Bumeryem Rozi, 55, said authorities in Xinjiang rounded her up along with other pregnant women to abort her fifth child in 2007. She said she complied because she feared that otherwise authorities would have confiscated her home and belongings and endangered her family.

“I was six and a half months pregnant. The police came, one Uighur and two Chinese. They put me and eight other pregnant women in cars and took us to the hospital,” Ms Rozi said.

“They first gave me a pill and said to take it. So I did. I didn’t know what it was. Half an hour later, they put a needle in my belly. And some time after that I lost my child.”

Semsinur Gafur, a former obstetrician-gynaecologist who worked in a village hospital in Xinjiang in the 1990s, said she and other female clinicians used to go house to house with a mobile ultrasound machine to check if anyone was pregnant.

“If a household had more births than allowed, they would raze the home. They would flatten the house, destroy it,” Ms Gafur said.

“This was my life there. It was very distressing. And because I worked in a state hospital, people didn’t trust me. The Uighur people saw me as a Chinese traitor.”

A third exile, Mahmut Tevekkul, said he was imprisoned and tortured in 2010 by Chinese authorities who interrogated him for information about one of his brothers. He said the brother was wanted partly because he published a religious book in Arabic.

Mr Tevekkul described being beaten and punched in the face during questioning.

“They put us on a tiled floor, shackled our hands and feet and tied us to a pipe, like a gas pipe. There were six soldiers guarding us. They interrogated us until the morning and then they took us to the maximum-security area of the prison,” he said.

The tribunal is the latest attempt to hold China accountable for alleged rights abuses against the Uighurs and other predominantly Muslim and ethnic Turkic minorities.

An estimated one million people or more — most of them Uighurs — have been confined in re-education camps in Xinjiang in recent years, according to researchers.

Chinese authorities have been accused of imposing forced labour, systematic forced birth control and torture, and separating children from incarcerated parents.

Beijing has flatly rejects the allegations. Officials have characterised the camps, which they say are now closed, as vocational training centres to teach Chinese language, job skills and the law to support economic development and combat extremism.

The hearings’ organisers said Chinese authorities have ignored requests to participate in the proceedings.

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Categories: China, News, Persecution, Turkey, Uighurs, Xinjiang

A message of care, empathy and respect during the crisis – Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg

May 16, 2021 Article

We stand before Shavuot, the festival of the giving of the Torah. This Torah is always understood as Torat chaim, the teaching of life. In these terrible times across Israel and Gaza, we pray for the teaching of life.

We pray for the safety of everyone, an end to the violence, a restoration of calm and coexistence across shared cities and neighbourhoods, and leadership which can bring hope for the future to both Israelis and Palestinians. Our hearts go out to everyone bereaved, wounded, and living in anxiety and fear. Our thoughts are for our family and friends, – and everyone.

The first of the Ten Commandments spoken at Sinai is ‘I am the Lord your God.’ Since the human being is created in God’s image, the echo of that commandment can be heard in every person. God calls out in the unique sanctity of each life. There is therefore no place in true faith for race hate, vigilante groups, be they Jewish, Muslim or any other, or for cruelty, injustice and humiliation.

I will never forget my short visit to Israel towards the end of the fighting in Gaza in 2014. I visited Tel Hashomer hospital and listened to wounded soldiers. A family whose son was killed showed me his Siddur, his prayer book. Handwritten on the opening pages were his hopes for a life of goodness and generosity. He’d been due to get married in just a few weeks. Terrible!

I was taken to a hospital in East Jerusalem which was receiving wounded children from Gaza. I’ll never forget this searing experience. I asked an older man sitting by the bed of a child whether this was his son. ‘No,’ he said; the parents were dead, killed together with eighteen members of the family.

There is only more hurt in all this violence, another ring of pain and anger which will someday have to be overcome. Only respect for all human life, fairness and something to hope for can bring a truly safe future.

So I turn with respect and deep admiration to some of the messages sent in these last days. Here is a letter from The Abraham Initiatives:

We are planning a national campaign entitled: “Only Together.” The campaign, in Hebrew and Arabic, will feature images of Jews and Arabs in everyday life: shopping together; studying together at university; working together in hospitals fighting Covid-19. Our campaign will feature on the main TV channels…

Here is a joint statement sent by Rabbi Ofek Meir from headteachers of Jewish and Arab schools in Haifa:

Our role as educators is to raise the younger generation to be independent, critical thinkers, with values; and to be a generation who will create knowledge, opinions, narratives and culture; and who respect the other’s opinion, and who believe in the values of equality and human rights. This is true anytime, anywhere, but especially now and in Haifa in particular.

This is from Rabbi Arik Ascherman, so often attacked for his defence of basic human justice:

One of the few positive developments has been the religious and other civil leaders who have begun to stand together and call for an end to the hate and violence that has led to Israeli Jews and Arabs lynching each other. Tonight around the country average Jewish and Arab citizens stood together to say no to the violence.

Here is from Rabbi Yoav Ende of the Masorti community of Hannaton:

Tonight, activists from Hannaton will join together with others from nearby communities and Arab villages for a joint demonstration of peace and hope; spreading a message of change, a message of a better Israel that can and must be here – showing that living together without conflict, without violence, is not only imperative, it is immediately achievable.

I see in my garden Dr Izzeldin Abuelaish, three of whose daughters were killed in Gaza, standing by the apple tree I planted in their memory, taking a photograph of it to send to his other children. I often reread sections of his book I Shall Not Hate.

Dr Abuelaish, Rabbi Yoav Ende, may our prayers ascend together.

Shabbat Shalom

Jonathan Wittenberg

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Categories: Gaza, Israel, News, Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg

Unite leadership candidate suspended by Labour over Patel tweet

May 14, 2021 Article

A senior trade unionist has been suspended by Labour after suggesting Home Secretary Priti Patel was “disgusting” and should be deported.

Unite’s assistant general secretary Howard Beckett – who is standing for the leadership of the major union – apologised for the social media message.

Mr Beckett sits on Labour’s ruling national executive committee but the PA news agency understands he has now been suspended by the party.

Mr Beckett made the remarks following protests in Glasgow over the detention of two men by Border Force officials.

Police Scotland released the Indian nationals after people surrounded the immigration enforcement van and prevented it from leaving on Thursday.

Mr Beckett originally said: “Priti Patel should be deported, not refugees. She can go along with anyone else who supports institutional racism.

“She is disgusting.”

He subsequently deleted the message.

He later said: “Priti Patel message on Eid al Fitr is to deport Muslim refugees. Those who have been forced to flee war zones.

“We are seeing appalling institutional racism again and again from the supposed pillars of the British elite.

“Our society should have no place for racism, at all.

“I’m very sorry for my earlier tweet. I was angry to see Muslim Refugees being deported on the morning of Eid al Fitr.”

He said his earlier message was “never intended to be literal” and “the wording was wrong” and “offensive”.

“I apologise unreservedly to Priti Patel. No one should be deported.”

It is understood neither of the men involved in the situation in Glasgow is Muslim.

Labour MP Chris Bryant said: “This is vile. This should play no part in Labour – or in British politics.”

A Labour spokesman said the party “takes these allegations extremely seriously” and promised appropriate action.

Tory MP Steve Baker said it was “an extraordinary, absolutely intolerable remark” which must have a “robust response” from Labour.

Credit: PA News

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Categories: Eid-Ul-Fitr, Howard Beckett, News, Priti Patel, Unite Leadership

Family surprised by presents from non-Muslim neighbour to celebrate Eid

May 13, 2021 Article

A woman has said a gift from her neighbour to celebrate Eid has restored her “faith in humanity”.

Shafaq Hassan, from Streatham, south London, said her neighbour treated her and son Ayaan, 14, to dates and a prayer mat in celebration of Eid, which this year began on Wednesday evening and will end on Thursday evening.

Posting a photo of the gifts to Twitter, Ms Hassan said: “Our non-Muslim neighbour (our biryani pal!) totally surprised us with Algerian dates and a prayer mat for my 14-year-old, who fasted the whole month.”

Ms Hassan, 40, told the PA news agency: “He’s been our neighbour for over 20 years, but completely surprised us with the Eid gifts.

“I didn’t realise he noted Ayaan was fasting the whole month… we were all surprised at his gesture and my son felt really special.

“They’re friendly neighbours, they’re fans of my mum’s biryani so we always send over a box.”

Ms Hassan said the family is celebrating with a meal and a special Eid cake, as they are unable to have a big party due to Covid-19 restrictions.

She told PA: “The whole family fasted but missed a few days, Ayaan fasted the whole month… he was determined to fast the whole month which is quite impressive, if I may say so myself.

“Due to Covid we can’t have big family party, obviously, we’re having a special meal with family to celebrate my son’s achievement.”

Muslims around the world are celebrating Eid al-Fitr in a subdued mood for a second year as Covid-19 forced mosque closures and family separations on the holiday marking the end of Ramadan.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan shared a photo of Trafalgar Square lit in purple lights to celebrate the occasion.

Ms Hassan told PA: “It’s hard we are not able to meet extended family or go to the mosque to pray. It’s isolating not being able to attend the mosque but we’re blessed we’re together as a family.

“Our neighbour’s gesture helps put faith in humanity. We’re a diverse community and its heart-warming that our neighbour was so thoughtful and encouraging of Ayaan and his religious beliefs.

“Eid is about sharing, being charitable and is a blessing.”

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Categories: COVID, Eid, Muslim, Neighbours, News, Non-Muslim neighbour