More than a year after high-profile and notorious radical British Islamist preacher Anjem Choudary was arrested and accused of leading a terrorist organization, he was convicted of terrorism charges after a trial in London, according to the Metropolitan Police on July 23rd.
Radical UK Islamist preacher Choudary convicted of terrorism offences https://t.co/hZ9sObJdlG pic.twitter.com/FyH5O5jjhY
— Reuters UK (@ReutersUK) July 23, 2024
The 57-year-old British-Pakistani Islamist was arrested in July last year and was charged with three counts of violating the United Kingdom’s Terrorism Act. He was accused of leading a terrorist group, being a member of a proscribed organization, and gaining support for such organizations between June 2022 and July 2023.
Prosecutors accused Choudary of directing the Islamist group al-Muhajiroun, which was banned as a terrorist group by the British government more than a decade ago. He is facing life in prison for taking a "caretaker role" in the group, which Choudary denied.
Aside from charges of directing a terrorist organization, Choudary was also found guilty of being a member of a proscribed organization and addressing meetings to encourage support for a proscribed terrorist group after a six-week trial in the Woolwich Crown Court.
He should be incarcerated not deported where he would be free to concoct more terrorist plots.
— Michael Eichert (@michaeleichert) July 24, 2024
Prosecutors also said Choudary directed al-Muhajiroun for a significant period after 2014 and encouraged support for the group by addressing meetings online. Although Choudary denied the charges against him, he told his trial he was one of the original three members of al-Muhajiroun.
The prosecution said Choudary was still acting as the group’s leader as late as July last year, making speeches to a group called Islamic Thinkers Society (ITS), which is accused of being a US-based offshoot of al-Muhajiroun.
Dominic Murphy, head of the Metropolitan Police’s counter-terrorism command, said that al-Muhajiroun's tentacles have spread worldwide and have had a massive impact on public safety and security.”
He was only found guilty of terrorism because he was not charged before a jury of HIS peers - colonial racism
— Snowy (@snowonder23) July 23, 2024
The commander also said that people have "conducted terrorist attacks or traveled for terrorist purposes" as a result of Choudary’s "radicalizing impact.” He said Choudary would be facing "a significant sentence." He and Khaled Hussein, a fellow member of al-Muhajiroun, are due to be sentenced on July 30th.
29-year-old Hussein from Edmonton, Canada, stood trial along with Choudary and was also found guilty of being a member of a terrorist organization. Hussein was arrested on the same day as Choudary in 2023 when he arrived on a flight at Heathrow Airport.
"I have no doubt that these convictions have left communities here in London, but also right across the UK and beyond, much safer," Murphy said, adding that the charge used against Choudary was "very rare" in the UK and a "significant milestone.”
UK has been so soft on him and wouldn’t surprised if he walks away yet again.
— Redkesh (@Observer511) July 23, 2024
The conviction resulted from a joint investigation between London’s Metropolitan Police and the UK’s domestic intelligence agency MI5, which was assisted by the New York Police Department and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Together, they gathered evidence, trawled hundreds of hours of audio and video content, and assessed over 16,000 documents to prove the connections between al-Muhajiroun, ITS, and Choudary.
Authorities also said Hussein helped Choudary host lectures with other extremists and edited extremist online blog articles and publications for him.
Choudary was previously imprisoned in 2016 for encouraging support for the Islamic State before being released in 2018. He drew attention and backlash for praising the men responsible for the 9/11 attacks in New York City and for saying he wanted to turn Buckingham Palace into a mosque.
