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Contact us Hamza 'had Big Ben as terror target' By Duncan Gardham (Filed: 12/01/2006) Abu Hamza, the Muslim preacher, had a 10-volume terrorism manual at his home which was dedicated to Osama bin Laden and featured a list of targets including Big Ben, skyscrapers, airports and football stadiums, a court heard yesterday. The Encyclopaedia of Afghani Jihad was written in Arabic between 1989 and 1999 with the help of Mujahadeen fighters in Afghanistan. Abu Hamza supporters Supporters of Abu Hamza outside court yesterday It featured sections on explosives, sabotage and assassination, the Old Bailey was told. The first volume talks of a holy war against English, French and Communist "imperialists" who protect Israel. It also refers to an "external pressure unit" which "belongs to the execution unit which operates abroad" and should be sent to a country "at least 10 years" before the Jihad starts. Among the high-profile targets suggested are the "Statue of Liberty, Eiffel Tower and Big Ben clock". Targets where there would be bigger loss of life are suggested as "skyscrapers, ports, airports, nuclear plants, football stadiums and large congregations at Christmas". David Perry, prosecuting, said it was a "manual, a blueprint for terrorism". "It includes all anyone ever needs to know if they want to make a home-made bomb or explosive." Hamza, 47, who was born in Egypt and has lived in Britain for several years as a British citizen, is accused of nine counts of soliciting to murder, four counts of using threatening, abusive or insulting behaviour and two counts of possessing abusive recordings with a view to distribution and possession of a document useful to preparing terrorism. When police raided his home in west London in May 2004 they found more than 2,700 audio tapes and 570 video tapes, some of them labelled "Jihad", meaning holy war, the court was told. Hamza was the preacher at Finsbury Park mosque before it closed in 2003. The terrorism encyclopedia was found on the top shelf in a ground- floor room of his house. The jury saw pictures of Hamza's home in Shepherd's Bush. It contained boxes piled with blank tapes and others labelled "master", suggesting they were being prepared for distribution. The tapes included sections on the evils of adultery, drink and e-number additives in food. In one speech, delivered to a meeting in Whitechapel, east London, in 1997 or 1998 Hamza said the role of women should be to encourage their husbands to train children as young as 10 so they could become mujahadeen (holy warriors). In a tape aimed at young people he said: "When you meet Allah you will be asked who was killed at your hands?" Britain and Western nations were "100 per cent anti-Islam", he said in another tape, calling on his followers to spread Islam "by the sword" and adding: "European leaders only respect those that are strong." He said: "Killing the kafir for any reason is OK, killing the kafir for no reason is OK," and he specifically singled out those that granted licences for "wine shops". When they say they love Allah they must ask themselves how much fafir blood they have spilt for Allah." Describing non-believers as "germs and viruses" in another tape he added: "There is no drop of liquid loved by Allah more than blood of Serbs, Jews or any other enemy of Allah." In a speech about a terrorist attack in Egypt, which killed 58 people in November 1997, Hamza told his audience the tourist industry should be Islamised and added: "While children should not be killed directly, their killing is permissible if they are in the target area." Asked if suicide bombing was permissible he said: "People call it suicide to put people off. The court heard Hamza was calling for a worldwide "caliphate" of Muslim Shariah law and for a Muslim ruler in the White House. Hamza claimed Jews were "blasphemous, traitors and dirty" and added that "Hitler was sent to torture and humiliate Jews", the court was told. Mr Perry said Islam was not the subject of the trial and added: "It is quite clear no religion condones the murder or killing of innocent men, women or children or the dissemination of hatred and bigotry." Hamza refused to answer questions when he was arrested but gave a statement claiming that Islam was on trial and he had never read the encyclopaedia, which had been given to him as a "gift". Do you have special knowledge or experience of these issues?
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