Sheikh Abu Hamza al-Masri (born 15 April 1958) is a fundamentalist Islamic cleric and one of the most distinctive radical Islamic figures in the United Kingdom. Condemned by many Muslims as too extreme, he denies any involvement in terrorism. His Finsbury Park Mosque has been linked with Zacarias Moussaoui and Richard Reid.
Early life
Abu Hamza was born Mustafa Kamel Mustafa in Alexandria, Egypt in 1958. He was the son of a middle class army officer. In 1979, he came to the UK and studied in Brighton, later working as a Soho nightclub bouncer. In 1981, he married Valerie Fleming, and had a son, Mohammed Mustafa Kamel. The marriage ended in divorce five years later. In the 1990s, Abu Hamza travelled to Afghanistan and sustained injuries to both hands and was blinded in the left eye. He says that these injuries were the result of clearing land mines. Abu Hamza now uses a distinctive hook as his right hand.
In 1999, his son Mohammed was sentenced to three years in prison in Yemen for his part in a bombing campaign.
Preaching
Abu Hamza, formerly the imam of Finsbury Park Mosque in North London, runs Supporters of Sharia, which is a group dedicated to the rule of Islamic law. In 2003, he addressed a rally in central London called by the radical Islamic group al-Muhajiroun, where members spoke of their support for al-Qaeda.
On February 4, 2003 (after being suspended since April 2002) Abu Hamza was dismissed from his position at the mosque by the Charity Commission, the statutory organisation that regulates charities (and hence most places of worship) in England and Wales. Since then, he has carried on his preaching on the streets outside the mosque to small crowds in two figure numbers.
Abu Hamza has publicly expressed support for Al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, and has warned the UK government about its involvement in Iraq. Abu Hamza was at one point gaining £1,030.65 a week in benefits.
Abu Hamza has claimed that the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster was a sign from God. He said:
- "These missions would increase the number of satellites for military purposes. It would increase the slavery of governance of other countries by America. It is a punishment from God. Muslims see it that way. It is a trinity of evil because it carried Americans, an Israeli and a Hindu, a trinity of evil against Islam. The fact that the motor of the craft fell on Palestine - all these are messages from God. It is a strong message, for the Israeli, to be taken up there to space and he spoke about the Holocaust, to try to make religious advancement from it and gain some moral high ground, hence you have seen this message over Palestine."
Extradition
The Yemeni authorities had requested his arrest and extradition, claiming he was linked to plots to bomb targets there, but the British authorities have not complied claiming he will not get a fair trial.
Hamza was naturalized as a British citizen when he married Valerie Traverso, who was a British citizen by birth. However, it appears that this marriage was bigamous as Valerie Traverso was still married to her previous husband. When this was discovered the Home Office began the procedure to remove his British citizenship.
When Hamza applied for legal aid to oppose this procedure, his application was rejected. His legal team has prolonged the fight by taking out a judicial review, and he could still appeal to the Court of Appeal or the Lords, which could take years to come to a decision. Inayat Bunglawala, spokesman for the Muslim Council of Great Britain, said, "This man has alienated the public from Muslims with his vile rants. British Muslims are growing impatient that he is still able to tarnish them with these remarks. He is not welcome at any mosque in the country and we have nothing to do with him."
On 27 May, 2004, Abu Hamza was detained by British authorities and is to appear before magistrates in the start of a process to extradite him to the United States, where he has been named in an indictment of participating with Earnest James Ujaama in his attempt to establish a terrorist training camp in late 1999 and early 2000 near Bly, Oregon, and providing aid to al-Qaeda.
However, as part of the European Union the United Kingdom is party to an agreement whereby extradition should be refused to any country which has the death penalty.
Arrest under Terrorism Act 2000
On August 26, 2004, al-Masri was arrested by British police under section 41 of the Terrorism Act 2000 which covers the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism. He was de-arrested on August 31 [1].
On October 19, 2004, Abu Hamza al-Masri was charged with 16 crimes, including encouraging the murder of non-Muslims, and intent to stir up racial hatred. [2]
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