A Muslim who served 20 years behind bars has slammed a report that claims prisons are factories for hundreds of home-grown terrorists. Former prisoner Danny Afzal, who works as a researcher for the Prison Reform Trust, hit out at the Royal United Services Institute journal after it published a report warning that prisons are radicalising Muslims.
It stated that Britain has more to fear than any other Western country from home-grown terrorists. According to its estimates, one in 10 Muslim prisoners in high security jails across England and Wales are “successfully targeted” by radical jihadists.
“Perhaps 800 potentially violent radicals, not previously guilty of terrorism charges, will be back in society over the coming five to 10 years,” the journal said. It warned against British “public complacency” and stoked fears that the possibility of terrorist attacks hangs over all major sporting events including the London 2012 Olympic Games.
Mr Afzal rubbished the report and warned that it would create major tensions inside and out of prisons.
He said: “I’m very disappointed by this scaremongering report. All the hard work to improve faith relations inside and out of prison are severely jeopardised by reports such as this. When so-called experts publish these misleading figures they never think of the consequences for Muslims and their families, who will be isolated as a result.
“The report is based on unreliable secondary evidence. I’ve visited prisons first hand and spoken to enough Muslims there to know that the report’s ‘facts’ are unfounded.”