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Blair 'liable for UK bombings'
20/07/2005 21:14 - (SA)
London - The leader of a defunct Islamic militant group blamed Prime Minister Tony Blair's government and its "crusader views" of Muslims for the July 7 suicide bomb attacks.
Anjem Choudary, leader of the disbanded Muhajiroun extremist group, also said the British public shared the blame for ignoring al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden's warning last year that the country would be attacked if it did not withdraw troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.
Omar Bakri, the Muhajiroun group's radical founder who was apparently being closely watched by British security forces, had on many occasions glorified suicide bombings in Iraq and by Palestinian militants in Israel.
Choudary had been reported as saying that Islam regarded as legitimate the kidnappings of Westerners in "occupied Muslim lands," such as Iraq.
Anti-terror legislation
Choudary criticised Blair's meeting on Tuesday with two-dozen members of the Muslim community to discuss anti-terror legislation the government planned to introduce by the end of the year.
He said: "This is not the time for talking; it's time for action. Blair has got to do something about the policies, which have caused 7/7."
Blair said on Wednesday that he was considering calling an international conference on how to eliminate Islamic extremism, particularly in religious schools, known as madrassas.
Blair said the conference would focus on the possibilities of taking "concerted action right across the world to try to root out this type extremist teaching".
Blair's foreign, domestic policies
The Muslim leaders who met with Blair on Tuesday said Choudary did not represent the Muslim community in Britain.
He said they were hand-picked by the government because they agreed with Blair's foreign and domestic policies - which he claimed were the root causes of the London bombings on a bus and three Underground trains.
At least 56 people were killed and about 700 injured.
Had Blair tried to meet with Bakri or other extremists such as Palestinian cleric, Abu Qatada, called bin Laden's "spiritual ambassador in Europe," it would have been "a very different picture".
He said he believed Bakri would have refused to meet with Blair had he been invited.
Murderer of Muslims
He said the preacher "would see Tony Blair as someone with blood of Muslims on his hands, a murderer of Muslims and an occupier of Muslim lands.
"He's the last person Sheik Omar Bakri Mohammed would want to speak to."
Choudary said to avoid a repeat of the attacks the government has to heed warnings.
Choudary said: "Those four individuals who carried out the operation cannot be blamed solely for 7/7."
Choudary was the director of the Sharia Court of the United Kingdom and chairman of the Society of Muslim Lawyers. Sharia was Muslim law as derived from the Qur'an.
Choudary said he thought the British foreign policy, support of Israel and the draconian laws had a lot to do with why 7/7 took place.
- AP
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