Category Archives: UK

More inflammatory lies from Britain First

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Britain First Facebook lies

This appeared yesterday on the Facebook page of far-right group Britain First. As you can see, the post has now been shared nearly twenty thousand times.

The picture may look familiar. That is because it is a well-known far-right fraud that has been circulating around the internet in various forms for several years now. Its claims are almost entirely inaccurate.

Tohseef Shah, who sprayed the words “Islam will dominate the world – Osama is on his way” and “Kill Gordon Brown” across the plinth of a war memorial in Burton upon Trent in May 2010, was not in fact fined £50. Having been convicted of criminal damage, he was ordered to pay £500 in compensation as well as £85 costs.

There were complaints that he hadn’t been charged with a racially or religiously aggravated offence, which would have carried a heavier penalty, but the CPS had decided against that on the grounds that the offence was politically motivated and “no racial or religious group can be shown to have been targeted”.

Continue reading →

Former Britain First member denounces group and visits mosque to apologise

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Matthew Lester at Crayford MosqueA former member of Britain First has denounced the organisation and visited a mosque to apologise to the Muslim community he says they demonise.

Matthew Lester, 25, joined the group six months ago to protest radical preachers such as Anjem Choudry but soon became disillusioned with the group.

He told the Huffington Post: “I thought it was for the people but found out it was more about publicity. Basically it was publicity stunts more than getting anything done and tackling issues. They’re not just going after extremists, they’re going after Muslims.”

To make amends Lester visited Crayford Mosque to apologise. He said: “I went in there and took my shoes and hat off and they said Allah knows what’s in your heart and we can tell by the way you came down here and apologised.”

Continue reading →

Finsbury Park first mosque to win prestigious national award

Posted on by Bob Pitt

North London Central MosqueFinsbury Park Mosque (FPM), in St Thomas’s Road, has been given a Visible Quality Mark by national body Community Matters – only the third time the award has gone to a faith organisation.

It marks an exceptional turn around for the mosque; when the current owners took over it was best known as a hive of extremism where radical Islamic cleric Abu Hamza had preached for more than a decade.

Mohammed Kozbar, chair of FPM, said: “It is great to achieve the Visible communities award after almost two years of hard work, we are proud to be the first mosque and the third faith organisation in the UK to achieve this award, it gave us the confidence to improve the standard of operation and accountability of our organisation”.

FPM, a registered charity, now attracts up to 2,000 worshippers, as well as hosting community events including youth and welfare services, IT courses and surgeries for councillors and Members of Parliament.

Jeremy Corbyn, MP for Islington North, said: “Congratulations to the staff at FPM. Your hard work and good results that are so valuable within our community deserve this wider recognition.

“It can be tough for charities in this climate, yet despite that you have been able to demonstrate high standards in all areas across your organisation. This endorsed standards award can give the public confidence that this charity is well run and give any funders assurance about how their money is being spent.”

Continue reading →

Serving soldier admits breaking into mosque and stealing Qur’an

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Liam King

An Afghanistan veteran who posted Facebook pictures of himself dressed as Osama Bin Laden could be kicked out of the Army – after breaking into a mosque and stealing a Koran.

Lance Corporal Liam King, of Eastwood Park, Great Baddow, pleaded guilty to the burglary of Chelmsford Mosque on Parkway, as well as criminal damage to the Islamic centre’s door, when he appeared at Chelmsford Crown Court on Monday.

Now Judge Christopher Ball has ordered a pre-sentence report to determine if King’s actions were motivated by “religious or racial hatred” or his alcohol problem.

King, who posted pictures of himself dressed as the terrorist and armed with dynamite, tried to break into the Jamia Masjid Mosque in Parkway on Sunday, November 24, last year, but failed.

The 22-year-old, who serves in the Mortar Platoon of the 1st Battalion Royal Anglian Regiment, returned to the religious building three weeks later in the early hours of Monday, December 16.

This time he managed to break into the mosque by forcing the front door. Along with two other men they stole a copy of the holy book worth £25, and caused £150 of damage to the lock and door.

CCTV from the failed burglary of November 24 shows King walking up to the mosque, shouting up to the window, banging on the door, and then trying to shoulder charge the entrance unsuccessfully.

The images from the December 16 incident show King barging through the door and entering the mosque with two other men. Police do not know who the other two men are, and are appealing to the public to help identify them. They emerge two minutes later with the Koran and swagger back down Moulsham Street, flicking through the pages.

Continue reading →

Posted in UK

Local democracy under attack in Tower Hamlets

Posted on by Bob Pitt

We deplore the proposal of the secretary of state Eric Pickles to “take over” the democratically elected council in Tower Hamlets (Report, 5 November). The inspection he ordered found no evidence of fraud or corruption, contrary to the Tory allegations made against the local administration. A takeover would be a flagrant violation of the democratic will of the population who re-elected a popular and well-regarded local mayor just a few months ago. A key reason Lutfur Rahman was endorsed again by local voters in east London is because he opposes the government’s efforts to force austerity policies on the council. He also shows how an administration can be managed with meagre resources so that key services are protected.

The administration in Tower Hamlets is vilified because it stands up against the government’s failing policies. It is a concerted effort to smear the local politician who has demonstrated that this stance is popular at the ballot box. That is why a string of wild and unfounded allegations has been made against the mayor and a series of investigations, including by the police, called for by the Tories. Scotland Yard has already this year cleared the council of any wrongdoing. The latest allegations from the Tories are simply more of the same. The imposition of unelected officials to overrule an elected mayor should send a chill down the spine of every democrat. It is not necessary to agree with every strand of policy adopted by Lutfur Rahman to see that this a blatant attack on local democracy. The mayor of Tower Hamlets, who has committed no legal or criminal offence, should be accountable to local voters, not to the will of a Tory secretary of state. We call on all those who support local democracy to oppose this manoeuvre.

Ken Livingstone Former mayor of London, Christine Shawcroft Labour party National Executive Committee, Kate Hudson National secretary, Left Unity, Billy Hayes General secretary, CWU, George Galloway MP, Malia Bouattia NUS Black Students’ officer, Steve Turner Assistant general secretary, Unite

Letter in the Guardian, 6 November 2014

Ken Livingstone launches bitter attack on Labour councillors in defence of Lutfur Rahman

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Lutfur Rahman and Ken LivingstoneKen Livingstone has launched a bitter attack on fellow Labour party members in defence of the controversial mayor of Tower Hamlets.

Lutfur Rahman is facing a series of government sanctions against his administration at the East End borough after a report by auditors. Communities Secretary Eric Pickles is appointing commissioners to take over key powers from Rahman after the report accused his council of a lack of transparency. He was ordered to halt all property deals, stop handing out council grants to community organisations and freeze the recruitment of senior executives.

Rahman was dumped as Labour’s mayoral candidate in Tower Hamlets in 2010 but went on to win as an independent. He was relected for a second term in May. Livingstone had a similar experience when he defied the Labour party to run for Mayor of London in 2000.

He described Rahman’s treatment as “like something out of East Germany”.

Continue reading →

Muslim student’s headscarf torn off as she’s branded ‘terrorist p*ki’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A 19-year-old Muslim student was subjected to a sickening racial attack in Piccadilly Gardens yesterday – as her headscarf was torn from her head.

Maryam*, a first-year photojournalism undergraduate at Staffordshire University, was confronted by a group of white girls after expressing her disgust at the way they were treating a beggar.

Yet she was subjected to a torrent of racial and physical abuse by the gang, which left her in tears. The gang shouted: “Go back to your country you f*cking terrorist p*ki, I will bomb your face off.” Then they slapped her face, before pulling her headscarf off and kicking her on the left side on the hips.

“What bothered me was what she said. The words hit me more than the physical attacks,” Maryam said. “You know when you hear these things being said and you get really upset that people are saying these things, but try having someone screaming it to your face. I felt weak. I feel horrible from shock I started crying. My friend, from the shock stood there didn’t know what she was doing.”

The group of girls had initially hit out at a Hijabi beggar, telling her to “go back to your own country” and “if I went to your country and begged for money I would get kidnapped and killed”.

Continue reading →

Nick Griffin tries to resurrect political career in Blackpool

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Griffin at Blackpool protest November 2014

A tenant has today told of the moment more than 50 people – believed to include ex-British National Party leader Nick Griffin – stood outside his home calling for his landlord to appear.

Latvian Janis Rozite, 22, said he was sat at home in Bloomfield Road on Saturday when the crowd appeared outside his property. They demanded to speak to the landlord who was one of the two men cleared several years ago of being involved in the disappearance of Charlene Downes.

Saturday marked the 11th anniversary of when the Blackpool schoolgirl went missing. Dozens of people were stood outside the Bloomfield Road property.

Hotel worker Mr Rozite told The Gazette: “I had a knock on my door around 12.30pm. I could hear shouting – I thought, ‘what the hell is happening?’ One of them shouted with a megaphone. They said where is your landlord? I said ‘please leave.’

“I called my landlord and he urged me to phone the police and when they arrived the crowd moved over to the other side of the road near Blackpool FC’s stadium.”

Mr Rozite said the crowd, which was seen by many Blackpool fans turning up for Saturday’s game against Ipswich, were carrying banners and shouting abuse. It is believed they remained for around 30 minutes before leaving.

Continue reading →