lucky wilbury
05-27-2004, 03:45 AM
http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBE6RBJQUD.html
Radical Muslim Cleric Arrested, Police Sources Say
By Michael McDonough Associated Press Writer
Published: May 27, 2004
LONDON (AP) - Radical Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri has been arrested on an extradition warrant issued by the U.S. government, police sources said Thursday.
London's Metropolitan Police press office refused to confirm the detention, saying only that officers from the Extradition and International Assistance Unit arrested a "British citizen, aged 47" at about 3 a.m. Thursday following an American request for his extradition.
But police sources, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity, confirmed that al-Masri was the man arrested.
Anti-terrorist officers escorted the man to a central London police station and conducted a search of his west London home under the Extradition Act 2003, police said.
The man was due to appear at Bow Street Magistrates' Court, sitting at Belmarsh Prison, later Thursday, the Metropolitan Police added.
The Home Office declined to comment on the arrest.
Al-Masri is one of Britain's best known Islamic radicals. He has been fighting deportation by the government, which has accused him of advising and supporting terrorist groups, including al-Qaida. The Egyptian-born cleric also is wanted in Yemen on charges of orchestrating terrorism there from Britain.
The British government revoked his British citizenship in April 2003, calling him a threat to the country's interests. He has appealed that decision to a special immigration tribunal and a ruling isn't expected until early next year.
Al-Masri, the former head preacher at Finsbury Park Mosque in London, has called the Sept. 11 attacks a Jewish plot and the invasion of Iraq a war on Islam.
At an immigration hearing last month, a government lawyer said al-Masri had "provided advice and support to terrorist groups," including al-Qaida and the Islamic Army of Aden, the organization that claimed responsibility for the bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000.
The lawyer said al-Masri had encouraged others to engage in jihad, "including fighting overseas and engaging in terrorist acts."
Al-Masri, who married a British woman and took British citizenship in 1981, denies any involvement in violence and says he is only a spokesman for political causes.
The fiery preacher with one eye and hooks for hands - lost, he says, fighting Soviet troops in Afghanistan in the 1980s - is a tabloid hate figure in Britain.
He has sparked outrage with sermons calling the invasion of Iraq a "war against Islam," claiming the Sept. 11 attacks were a Jewish plot and calling the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster a "punishment from Allah" because Christian, Jewish and Hindu astronauts were aboard.
Radical Muslim Cleric Arrested, Police Sources Say
By Michael McDonough Associated Press Writer
Published: May 27, 2004
LONDON (AP) - Radical Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri has been arrested on an extradition warrant issued by the U.S. government, police sources said Thursday.
London's Metropolitan Police press office refused to confirm the detention, saying only that officers from the Extradition and International Assistance Unit arrested a "British citizen, aged 47" at about 3 a.m. Thursday following an American request for his extradition.
But police sources, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity, confirmed that al-Masri was the man arrested.
Anti-terrorist officers escorted the man to a central London police station and conducted a search of his west London home under the Extradition Act 2003, police said.
The man was due to appear at Bow Street Magistrates' Court, sitting at Belmarsh Prison, later Thursday, the Metropolitan Police added.
The Home Office declined to comment on the arrest.
Al-Masri is one of Britain's best known Islamic radicals. He has been fighting deportation by the government, which has accused him of advising and supporting terrorist groups, including al-Qaida. The Egyptian-born cleric also is wanted in Yemen on charges of orchestrating terrorism there from Britain.
The British government revoked his British citizenship in April 2003, calling him a threat to the country's interests. He has appealed that decision to a special immigration tribunal and a ruling isn't expected until early next year.
Al-Masri, the former head preacher at Finsbury Park Mosque in London, has called the Sept. 11 attacks a Jewish plot and the invasion of Iraq a war on Islam.
At an immigration hearing last month, a government lawyer said al-Masri had "provided advice and support to terrorist groups," including al-Qaida and the Islamic Army of Aden, the organization that claimed responsibility for the bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000.
The lawyer said al-Masri had encouraged others to engage in jihad, "including fighting overseas and engaging in terrorist acts."
Al-Masri, who married a British woman and took British citizenship in 1981, denies any involvement in violence and says he is only a spokesman for political causes.
The fiery preacher with one eye and hooks for hands - lost, he says, fighting Soviet troops in Afghanistan in the 1980s - is a tabloid hate figure in Britain.
He has sparked outrage with sermons calling the invasion of Iraq a "war against Islam," claiming the Sept. 11 attacks were a Jewish plot and calling the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster a "punishment from Allah" because Christian, Jewish and Hindu astronauts were aboard.