God Save The Queen, and Fast!

U.S. counter-terrorism strategy may be in disarray but it’s a paradigm of consistency compared to our closest ally across the Atlantic… A recent article in the em>Daily Mail< details the strange story of Azad Ali, an IT administrator for the UK Treasury, and President of Britain’s “Civil Service Islamic Society” (the “CSIS”). As reported in the article, on his personal internet blog (“Between The Lines”), Mr. Ali apparently: quoted Islamic extremists touting Muslims’ alleged “obligation” to murder British and U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq; accused the British Government of failing to condemn Israel as a “Zionist terror state”; and characterized moderate British Muslim citizens as “self-serving vultures, feeding on the dead flesh of the Palestinians.” According to the article, although these comments were set forth on Mr. Ali’s personal blog, Mr. Ali did not attempt to hide the fact that he was a British civil servant, and provided a link to the CSIS’s official website.

As reported in the article, Mr. Ali is widely considered by many to be a high profile voice of moderation within Britain’s Islamic community, serving as Trustee of the East London Mosque and the London Muslim Centre. He has also apparently served on the board of London CrimeStoppers, and sits on several London police committees. The Daily Mail also reported that Mr. Ali is the former chairman of the Muslim Safety Forum and most recently chaired that Forum’s counter-terrorism work team, which was responsible for coordinating with the British Home Office, senior political officers, and U.K. Security Services.

Mr. Ali has apparently been suspended by his employer while HM Treasury investigates the allegations, and has, to date, declined to comment to the media about the case. Readers can assess Mr. Ali’s comments for themselves at his blog. However, the Daily Mail also reports that at CSIS’s recent annual dinner, the proceeds of that function were passed along to Interpal, a U.S. designated “Specially Designated Global Terrorist” that the U.S. Treasury Department described as “the fundraising coordinator for HAMAS.” Readers may also take comfort in the fact that CSIS’s dinner was attended by, among others, Peter Lewis, head of the Crown Prosecution Service. The British Government has not designated Interpal as a terrorist organization. On two prior occasions, the British Charity Commission has investigated Interpal, freezing its accounts during the investigations’ pendency, and on both occasions unfreezing its bank accounts and allowing Interpal to continue to operate. However, in 2006 the Commission commenced a third investigation (which is still open at this time) and in December 2008 Lloyds TSB directed the Islamic Bank of Britain (for whom Lloyds clears checks) to close Interpal's accounts.

For his part, Mr. Ali can take heart in the fact that his cause has been taken up by supporters on Facebook, who have wasted no time in launching a new Facebook “Group” entitled “Justice 4 Muslims; Justice 4 Azad Ali”. As also reported in the Daily Mail, he has a wide network of friends through, inter alia, his Facebook account. According to the article, included among Mr. Ali’s Facebook “friends” is Inayat Bunglawala, Media Secretary of the Muslim Council of Britain (“MCB”). The MCB gained no small degree of notoriety for its refusal between 2001 and 2007 to participate in Holocaust Memorial Day ceremonies, and (u>as reported by The Observer’s Martin Bright<) circulated Osama Bin Laden’s writings for nearly five months before the September 11 attacks, describing Bin Laden as a “mujahid” and “holy warrior” in an April 2001 email. After the 9/11 attacks, Mr. Bunglawala graciously ceased lauding bin Laden, instead stating “Osama was a mujahid. I do not consider him as such now. People change.”

The effort to reach out to “moderate” Muslim community leaders, whether in Britain or in the U.S. is important, but also requires honesty and candor. If the CSIS, which allegedly supports a Specially Designated Global Terrorist openly is “moderate,” the term loses all meaning. President Bush used to speak of the “soft bigotry of low expectations” but the British government seems to practice a form of “low expectations for bigotry.” This is no way to fight a war.