Militant Islam Monitor > Satire > Head of Scotland Yard visits mosques with Al Qaeda operative Iqbal Sacranie to urge Muslims "tackle enemy in their midst"

Head of Scotland Yard visits mosques with Al Qaeda operative Iqbal Sacranie to urge Muslims "tackle enemy in their midst"

August 11, 2005

MIM: More Londistan follies: If police chief Ian Blair is really serious about getting Muslims to 'tackle the enemy in their midst' he should start by showing he means business and arrest Iqbal Sacranie - instead of traipsing around London with him and making a mockery of government proposals to crack down on terrorism.

The head of Scotland Yard makes the rounds of London mosques with Iqbal Sacranie, the secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain who supported Bin Laden's entrance into Britain, is trustee of an Al Qaeda charity front , and uses the facade of civil rights group to promote terrorism.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,22989-1695451_2,00.html

Muslims 'must tackle enemy in their midst'
By Simon Freeman, Times Online

Sir Iqbal Sacranie: backed police message (Andre Camara/The Times)

The head of Scotland Yard visited mosques across Greater London today to appeal to the city's million strong Muslim community to actively join the fight against terrorism.

A week after four British Muslims blew themselves up on the London Underground and a double-decker bus, Sir Ian Blair warned that Muslims had been in denial about the "lunatic fringe" in their midst for too long.

The bombing of London by British-born Muslims had been the worst nightmare for Britain's settled Muslim community. In their aftermath, Muslims could no longer ignore the dangerous elements in their midst, said Sir Ian.

"Now it is your problem," he told Islamic leaders in a speech at the Minhaj-ul-Quran mosque in Romford.

He suggested that a third-person reporting method was set up where Muslims could pass on their concerns about individuals. He appealed for the whole community to help identify terrorists, saying: "I need you. We've got nearly a million Muslims in London, 1.6 million Muslims in the UK. I've only got 300 Muslim police officers in London and that's not enough. I need your mothers and your fathers, your brothers and your sisters."

The Metropolitan Police commissioner welcomed how Islamic leaders joined forces to condemn last week's attacks and he said that except for one single day, the number of race hate incidents in London had actually fallen since the bombing.

"Nothing is showing that London is blaming one community rather than another. We say that no community should be targeted or shamed for this, you do not need to apologies, these are not your people, but you have to help us find them," Sir Ian said.

"It is not the police, it is not the intelligence services, that will defeat terrorism. It is communities that will defeat terrorism. We must seize this moment. We have to seize a moment in which the Muslim community changes from your state of shock and disbelief into active engagement in counter-terrorism.

"Now, it is your problem."

It emerged today that three of the bombers - Shehzad Tanweer, Hasib Mir Hussain and Mohammad Sidique - had been banned from their three local mosques in Leeds, although the reasons for their exclusions remained unclear.

Sir Ian drew an analogy with a successful campaign against Jamaican Yardie gangs that relied on the co-operation of the Afro-Caribbean community as he called for Muslims help in fingering the "preachers of hate" who are the recruiting sergeants of terror.

No longer, he said, could Muslims dismiss figures such as Abu Hamza, the radical Finsbury Park preacher, as lunatics who are not important. "The problem is that if they appeal to only half a dozen, they are important," he said.

Meanwhile, the Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of Britain today visited community leaders in Leeds where he broadly agreed with Sir Ian's concerns.

Sir Iqbal Sacranie told a meeting of Islamic and community group leaders in the city: "We are all responsible for it in a way. We have been talking about the fact there are elements within the community who perhaps are carrying out the rhetoric and message of hate and very little has been done

The community across the country condemns such activities but beyond that, what have we been doing?"

Sir Iqbal said he had spoken to a number of groups in the city: "They are all in a state of shock, as we all are."

Sir Iqbal listened as representatives of a range of Muslim and other groups gave their views at the Baab-ul-Ilm Centre, in Shadwell. He told the meeting to expect a statement later today from Islamic scholars from across Britain at the London Central Mosque which was "so powerful and so strong" it would leave no-one in any doubt about the Muslim communities attitudes to atrocities such as the London bombings.

He said: "That statement is going to re-define the position about what Islam has to say about acts of atrocity, acts of murder and criminality."

But Sir Iqbal criticised West Yorkshire police for failing to reach out to the Muslim community during the crisis. He said: "As much as I've heard tremendous news of how they've been able to support communities in other parts of the country - in London for example it's been extremely positive - when I came here I found that in some cases it has not been good.

"In the Beeston area people are extremely disturbed. In a time of crisis the community should have been told, 'We're here'. Yes, certain raids have to take place, certain information is needed to carry out our inquiries, but it has to be carried out sensitively'.

"Innocent people should not become victims of this crime. We need to build the confidence of the police in the community. The police have to have responsibility and engage itself with the community so that it can support it and try to overcome the evil that we're facing."

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http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,59-1692789,00.html

MIM: Another boilerplate statement by Muslim organisations who foster terrorism replete with the standard cliches; expresses "deepest anger" at the "terrible atrocities" and "suffering of the unfortunate individuals" "who were caught up in this" as if the suicide bombings were random accidents that had nothing whatsoever to do with the fact that the people who were targetted were victims of the teachings which can be heard daily in the mosques of the signatories to this meaningless and cynical publicity stunt.

Condemnation from the Muslim community in Leeds and calls for unity
From Councillor Mohammed Iqbal and others

Sir, We write on behalf of the Muslim community of Leeds to express our deepest anger at the terrible atrocities committed in London.

The tragic events have touched the whole of the nation regardless of race or religion or culture. The suffering of the unfortunate innocent individuals who were caught up in these events is shared by all of us.

Our deepest condolences go to the loved ones of those who lost their lives and our heartfelt sympathies are with those who have suffered injuries.

These actions are despicable and cowardly in the way they targeted innocent individuals. We strongly and unequivocally condemn these barbaric actions which are an attempt to damage our democracy, freedom and community relations.

We and other leaders of the Leeds Muslim community hope that the instigators are quickly caught and brought to justice to show that there is no place for such callous acts and that good will always prevail over evil like terrorism.

The Muslim community of Leeds stands in solidarity with the Government and the whole nation in these tragic times and will confront terrorism such as that committed on July 7 in whatever way possible.

MOHAMMED IQBAL TAJ ALI
(Muslim Cultural Society)
SHAH KHAN
(Chairman, Leeds Islamic Centre)
FAZAL REHMAN
(Leeds Muslim Council)
NASEEB RAHMAN
(Grand Mosque)
MOHAMMED RAFIQUE
(Councillor)
IKHLAQ MIR
(Al-Hassan Centre)
MOHAMMED NESAKAR ALI
(Shah Jalal Mosque)
MOHAMMED SARWAR
(Kashmir Muslim Welfare Association)
MOHAMMED SHABIR
(Armley Muslim Welfare Association)
MOHAMMED NASEEM
(South Leeds Muslim Association)
HASSAN KAYANI
(Iqra Education Centre)
MOHAMMED ALI KESHMIRI
(Ahlul Bayt Culture Centre)
SYED ZEESHAN RIZI
(Idarah Ansaral Hussain)
Leeds, West Yorkshire

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