Tag: prison

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Choudary sentenced to 28 years in prison by court

Choudary’s lawyer, Paul Hynes, argued that the group was “little more than a husk of an organisation” and that almost all attacks linked to it had already occurred…reports Asian Lite News

British-Pakistani preacher Anjem Choudary has been sentenced to life in prison for directing a “terrorist organisation.” Choudary, 57, was convicted last week of directing al-Muhajiroun (ALM), which was banned as a ‘terrorist organisation’ more than a decade ago.

Judge Mark Wall announced a life sentence for the British-Pakistani preacher, with a minimum term of 28 years before he would be eligible for parole. Wall told Choudary at London’s Woolwich Crown Court on Tuesday that organisations such as ALM “normalise violence in support of an ideological cause” through online meetings.

“Their existence gives individuals who are members of them the courage to commit acts which otherwise they might not do. They drive wedges between people who otherwise could and would live together in peaceful coexistence,” he said. According to prosecutor Tom Little, Choudary became “the caretaker emir” of ALM after its leader, Omar Bakri Mohammed, was jailed in Lebanon in 2014.

Choudary’s lawyer, Paul Hynes, argued that the group was “little more than a husk of an organisation” and that almost all attacks linked to it had already occurred.

The police in Britain, the United States and Canada gathered evidence after a joint investigation, that Choudary was running and directing ALM via online lectures with followers based in New York. Prosecutors said the group has operated under many names, including the New York-based Islamic Thinkers Society, which Choudary has spoken to. New York Deputy Police Commissioner Rebecca Weiner, termed the case ‘historic’ and said the Islamic Thinkers Society was ALM’s US branch.

Choudary was convicted with one of his followers, Khaled Hussein. According to the prosecutors, he was also a dedicated supporter of the group. Hussein, 29, of Edmonton, Canada, was convicted of membership in a proscribed organisation and sentenced to five years in prison. The two were arrested a year ago after Hussein landed at Heathrow Airport. Earlier in 2016, Choudary was imprisoned for encouraging support for ISIL (ISIS). He was released in 2018 after serving half of his five-and-a-half-year sentence.

The group ALM, which emerged in the late 1990s, has been linked to several attacks both at home and abroad, according to Al Jazeera. (ANI)

ALSO READ-Muslim preacher Choudary in custody on terror charges

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-Top News USA

Trump demands release of imprisoned Jan. 6 rioters

Trump is the Republican candidate challenging Democratic President Joe Biden in the Nov. 5 US election…reports Asian Lite News

Donald Trump said on Friday that his supporters prosecuted for their actions in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol should be freed, citing a Supreme Court ruling in favor of a man who challenged an obstruction charge related to the riot — a charge Trump also faces.

Speaking at a campaign rally in Virginia, the former president pointed to Friday’s ruling, which raised the legal bar for prosecutors pursuing obstruction charges in the federal election subversion case against Trump and defendants involved in the attack.

“Free the Jan. 6 hostages now. They should free them now for what they have gone through” Trump said, as the crowd cheered.

“They’ve been waiting for this decision for a long time,” Trump added.

Trump is the Republican candidate challenging Democratic President Joe Biden in the Nov. 5 US election.

The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 to throw out a lower court’s decision that had allowed a charge of corruptly obstructing an official proceeding — the congressional certification of Biden’s 2020 victory over Trump that the rioters sought to prevent — against defendant Joseph Fischer, a former police officer. The justices directed the lower court to reconsider the matter.

The ruling was a potential boost for Trump, who was hit with two obstruction-related charges as part of a four-count criminal indictment in a case brought last year by Special Counsel Jack Smith. Trump has pleaded not guilty in the case.

“That is a great thing for people that have been so horribly treated,” Trump said of the ruling.

Trump has often valorized his supporters convicted for their roles in the attack on the Capitol, calling them “patriots” and “warriors.” Among other crimes, some of them were prosecuted for violence against police officers.

The Supreme Court on Monday is expected to issue its ruling in Trump’s claim of presidential immunity from prosecution in the election subversion case brought by the special counsel. It is the final day of the court’s current term.

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UK News

‘Muslim gangs in prisons are forcing conversion’

Collin also recommended the government to conduct an immediate review of the claims that inmates are being forcibly radicalized and converted in jail as well as the issue of faith-based gangs…reports Asian Lite News

On April 25, 2023, Collin Bloom, an independent faith advisor appointed by the UK government released his report “The Bloom Review” which made several alarming revelations. The report states that prisoners in jails across Britain are being converted to Islam by Muslim inmates and are also being provided ‘protection’ on converting.

The report adds that Qurans were left on the beds of the new prisoners and they were given the choice to either “convert or get hurt”.

“Failure to identify as a Muslim meant that at best the new prisoner would be denied ‘protection’ from the dominant Muslim gang on that wing, or at worst the new prisoner would be subjected to violence and intimidation from that same gang,” Bloom said.

He said, however, that the government must “redouble” its efforts to “reinforce the distinctions between extremist Islamism and Islam and between Islamist extremists and Muslims.”

The paper goes on to highlight certain statistics to highlight the frequency of in-prison conversions. Muslims made up around 18% of the prison population in 2021, an increase from 8% in 2002.192 “However, the Muslim male prisoner population in London prisons is reportedly almost 30%, which is considerably higher than the 15% in the general London population (as recorded in the 2021 Census),” the report reads.

Collin also recommended the government to conduct an immediate review of the claims that inmates are being forcibly radicalized and converted in jail as well as the issue of faith-based gangs.

Additionally, the report mentions that the Hindus make up for the lowest levels of prison rates of any religion but have the highest employment rates.

Excerpt from The Bloom Review

In his 159-page report, Bloom asserts that “insufficient action” has been undertaken and continues, saying: “There is one burning injustice from which this Government should not shrink, and that is the issue of forced and coercive marriages.

Some of the most pressing issues within the few Sikh communities in Britain, notably the strife brought on by the “extremist fringe ideology within the pro-Khalistan movement, have been brought to light by Collin Bloom.

“Propagating hate and divisions, trying to brainwash youth to cause divisions and hate in India, [is] really sad. [Some Sikh extremist groups] are using places of worship to fund or getting funds under the name of faith and spearheading hate, these types of organisations shouldn’t be allowed to operate in our great country,” the report reads.

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Arab News News

Muslim Brotherhood leader sentenced to life prison in Egypt

An Egyptian court on Sunday sentenced acting Muslim Brotherhood leader Mahmoud Ezzat to life in prison over national security charges, the official Ahram Online news website reported…reports Asian Lite News

Sunday’s verdict is considered a first-degree ruling that can be appealed, according to the report.

A life sentence in Egypt carries 25 years in jail.

Egypt’s Public Prosecution charged Ezzat and other defendants with storming Egyptian prisons and collaborating with the Palestinian Islamic movement Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood’s international leadership, and the Lebanese Hezbollah group to create chaos and topple the Egyptian state.

He was also indicted for receiving military training from Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps to launch military attacks in Egypt.

Ezzat, arrested in August 2020, was named the Muslim Brotherhood’s acting supreme guide in August 2013, replacing Mohamed Badie who currently serves a life sentence over violence charges.

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In his trial that began as far back as 2011, Ezzat was first handed a death sentence in absentia in June 2015.

Under Egyptian law, however, in-absentia convictions must be retried once the defendant is apprehended.

Over the past several years, Ezzat was given multiple prison sentences over charges of murder, terrorism, collaboration with foreign organizations and disclosing information pertaining to Egypt’s national security.

Egypt designated the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization in 2013.

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Africa News News World

At least 38 inmates died in prison fire in central Burundi

At least 38 inmates died in prison fire in central Burundi

At least 38 inmates died and 69 others were injured in a fire that happened in Gitega prison, in Gitega province, central Burundi, Burundian Vice President Prosper Bazombanza said at a press conference after a visit to the prison…reports Asian Lite News

“Out of over 1,500 inmates living in Gitega central prison, we deplore the death of 38 prisoners including 12 who were asphyxiated and 26 others who died of deep burns. During the incident which happened at dawn on Tuesday, 69 inmates were injured, 34 of them seriously,” Bazombanza said.

According to him, 35 other inmates were slightly injured and received treatment inside the prison, Xinhua news agency reported.

At least 38 inmates died in prison fire in central Burundi

“Medics at Gitega regional hospital where the 34 inmates have been admitted have ascertained that they will get better soon,” said Bazombanza.

“The origin of the fire is chaotic installations, by inmates, of electric wires inside the prison,” he said.

He took the opportunity to warn Burundian people living in communities like schools, military, or police barracks to avoid making such chaotic installations.

He pledged that the hospital bill for those injured patients will be fully paid by the government.

Bazombanza urged the solidarity ministry to provide food items, shelters like tents and mattresses to the prison to allow inmates to “live in acceptable conditions”.

He also appealed to the infrastructure ministry to identify the needs for the rehabilitation of that prison, currently hosting over 1,500 inmates, but whose hosting capacity is only 400.

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The prison of Gitega hosts inmates who were accused of the 2015 failed coup plot against the late President Pierre Nkurunziza who suddenly died on June 8, 2020.

In August 2021, the prison of Gitega caught fire, but the fire was quickly brought under control before causing damages.