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Encyclopedia > 31 January 2007 Birmingham raid
It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with 2007 Plot to Behead a British Muslim Soldier. (Discuss)

The 31 January 2007 Birmingham raid saw the arrest of nine Muslim men, mostly of Pakistani origin, in Birmingham, UK. They were suspected of planning to kidnap a Muslim British soldier, torture him, force him to "apologize" for fighting in Iraq, and behead him. A videotape of the murder was to be released on the Internet for propaganda purposes.[1][2] Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم, Turkish: Müslüman, Persian and Urdu: مسلمان, Bosnian: Musliman) is an adherent of Islam. ... This article is about the city in England. ... An Australian anti-conscription propaganda poster from World War One Propaganda is a type of message aimed at influencing the opinions or behavior of people. ...

Contents

The alleged plot

The plot involved kidnapping a British Muslim soldier and taking him either to a run-down house in Leatherhead Close, Aston, Birmingham[3] believed to be owned by the wife of suspect Zahoor Iqbal[4], or a safehouse in Tipton, nine miles from Birmingham. There, he would be blindfolded, handcuffed, made to demand the withdrawal of troops from Iraq, and then he would be killed. A video of this would be released on the Internet.[5] On a password-protected Internet forum affiliated with Al-Qaeda, the plotters were told: "It is preferable if you photograph or video the operation so that it can have a bigger set of viewers and can be used by the media."[1] Aston is an area of Birmingham, England, in the north-east of the city centre. ... The Tipton is also the name of a fictional hotel on The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, and a term to describe low-grade sportscards. ... Al-Qaeda (Arabic: القاعدة, the foundation or the base) is the name given to a worldwide network of militant Islamist organizations under the leadership of Osama bin Laden. ...


The group spent months to compile a hit list of 25 potential targets.[2][6]


The raid

For six months, British police forces and intelligence agencies, under the codename Operation Gamble, have been investigating the plot.[1] They had hoped to investigate for another two months before making arrests, but when there were indications that the plotters were about to go into action, police were forced to make arrests.[2] One of the suspects purchased a video camera during the weekend before the raid, and it was feared that this was done in preparation for the kidnapping.[5]


On January 31, 2007, just before 4 in the morning, more than 700 police officers raided eight homes and four businesses, including a corner store, two Islamic bookstores and an Internet cafe. Eight men were arrested then[2], with a ninth arrested later in the afternoon while driving into Birmingham.[6]


The suspects

Nine men have been arrested, some of whose identities are known:

  • Amjad Mahmood, 29, a father of two[7], who works at Khan General Store, which was set up by his parents and which he now owns.[8]
  • Pervaiz Khan, or Parviz Khan, 30, an unemployed father of four[7] and longtime friend of Mahmood.[8] His wife is said to be in Pakistan.[9]
  • Azzar Iqbal, 38, who owns a pizzaria called Pizza Pronto, and once ran a snooker hall. He is the father of three girls who attend an Islamic school.[8]
  • Zahoor Iqbal, a 29-year-old teacher who lives in Kingstanding, north Birmingham. He and his wife Rohama Sattar, 35, an accountant, have two young children. His wife is believed to own the house where the soldier was to have been taken. Iqbal teaches Information Technology part-time at Saltley School, a specialist science college.[4][10] His white Ford was seized.[7][8] Sources say he went to the Markazi Jamiat Ahl-e-Hadith centre in Small Heath, which was investigated in the documentary Undercover Mosque.[11]
  • Abu Bakr or Bakir, a 29-year-old bookseller.[7] He works at the Maktabah al-Ansar[12] book store, of which he is a part-owner.[13]
  • Hamid Elasmar, 43[14]
  • Mohammed Irfan, 30[14]
  • Basiru Gassama, 29[14], born in Mansaringsu, Brikama, Gambia, lives in Hodge Hill, Birmingham, and works at Khan General Store. He attended madrasahs in Gambia and Senegal, and continued his education in Saudi Arabia. He then moved to the UK and acquired citizenship. He is married to the daughter of a former Gambian Foreign Affairs minister. His brother was arrested in March 2006 in Banjul, Gambia as a suspect in a plot to overthrow Gambian president Yahya Jammeh.[3][15][16]

One of the suspects ran military-style survival courses for Muslims in the Peak District in Derbyshire.[17] This article does not cite its references or sources. ... snapshot of Channel 4 documentary Mosque Undercover Undercover Mosque is a documentary from British Television Channel 4 programme Dispatches which aired on January 15 2007. ... Brikama is one of the largest cities in the Gambia, lying south of Banjul. ... Ulugh Beg Madrasa, Samarkand, ca. ... March 2006 : ← - January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Fijian Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase announces that the 2006 Fiji general elections will be held in the second week of May 2006 from the 6th to the 13th. ... Location of Banjul in The Gambia Street in Banjul city Banjul is the capital of the Gambia. ... Categories: People stubs | 1965 births ... The Peak District within England The Peak District is an upland area in central and northern England, lying mainly in northern Derbyshire, but also covering parts of Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Staffordshire, and South and West Yorkshire. ... Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. ...


The charges

Three men, including Abu Bakr and Azzar Iqbal, have been released without charges.[18][19]


Five men (Parviz Khan, Mohammed Irfan, Zahoor Iqbal, Hamid Elasmar and Amjad Mahmood) were each charged with funding terrorism and supplying terrorists.[10]


Two of these men were given additional charges. Parviz Khan was charged with "intention to kidnap and kill a member of the British armed forces", and Amjad Mahmood was charged with failing to disclose information concerning a terrorist plot by "Parviz Khan and others" to police.[10]


On February 9, Basiru Gassama was charged with failing to disclose information concerning a terrorist plot to police.[20]


References

  1. ^ a b c "How al-Qaeda 'tried to bring Baghdad to Birmingham'", The Times, February 1, 2007. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  2. ^ a b c d "Al Qaeda was behind 'plot' to behead soldier", The Daily Mail, February 1, 2007. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  3. ^ a b Parker, Andrew. "Murder videos at raid house", The Sun, February 02, 2007. Retrieved on February 12, 2007.
  4. ^ a b "The suspect known as the Terminator", The Daily Mail, February 3, 2007. Retrieved on February 12, 2007.
  5. ^ a b Dunn, Tom Newton. "We'll behead him in Tipton...", The Sun, February 1, 2007. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  6. ^ a b "Muslim soldiers 'faced kidnap and beheading'", The Times, February 1, 2007. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  7. ^ a b c d "Preacher calls for death to all Muslim soldiers", The Times, February 04, 2007. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  8. ^ a b c d "The men they held at dawn", The Daily Mail, February 1, 2007. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  9. ^ "Dad is charged over soldier kidnap plot", The Daily Record, February 10, 2007. Retrieved on February 12, 2007.
  10. ^ a b c Chaytor, Rod. "12 Terror Charges..", The Daily Mirror, February 10, 2007. Retrieved on February 11, 2007.
  11. ^ "Suspect is linked to 'hate' mosque", The People, February 4, 2007. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  12. ^ "MI5 tried to recruit founder of bookshop", The Guardian, February 1, 2007. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  13. ^ "Terror suspects arrive at court", The Sun, February 1, 2007. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  14. ^ a b c Gardham, Duncan. "Man charged with plot to kill soldier", The Telegraph, February 10, 2007. Retrieved on February 9, 2007.
  15. ^ "Suspect no6 on terror rap", The Sunday People, February 11, 2007. Retrieved on February 12, 2007.
  16. ^ Jarju, PK. "Brikama man in UK terror plot", All Gambian, February 11, 2007. Retrieved on February 13, 2007.
  17. ^ Wells, Tom. "Suspect ran survival course", The Sun, February 5, 2007. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  18. ^ Cowan, Mark. "'Police state for muslims'", icBirmingham, February 8, 2007. Retrieved on February 8, 2007.
  19. ^ Allen, Nick. "U.K. Police Charge Five Men With Terror Offenses", Bloomberg, February 9, 2007. Retrieved on February 11, 2007.
  20. ^ "6th man in court over plot", The Sunday Mirror, February 11, 2007. Retrieved on February 11, 2007.

 
 

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