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Imam in Britain praises Columbia disaster

Imam in Britain praises Columbia disaster

Author: IANS
Publication: The Times of India
Date: February 4, 2003

Pressure on the Blair government is growing to deport an imam here who has said the space shuttle Columbia was destroyed because it was carrying a "trinity of evil" -- Americans, an Israeli and a Hindu.

Sheikh Abu Hamza said: "Muslim people see these pilots as criminals. By going into space they would have sharpened the accuracy of their bombs through satellites.

"These missions would increase the number of satellites for military purposes. They 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."

He said the explosion of Columbia was a message from god because the first Israeli in space, Ilan Ramon, a former fighter pilot, was killed over an area of Texas called Palestine.

Abu Hamza added: "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."

Shadow home secretary Oliver Letwin said Hamza's comments were "monstrous, appalling, despicable, and outrageous".

He said: "All sensible people in Britain will be amazed that someone can engage in implicit incitement of this sort without anyone laying a finger on him."

Kishore Ruparelia from the Vishwa Hindu Parishad said: "Those people on board had nothing to do with politics, it was a group of innocent people."

He said Abu Hamza was a "fanatical" man who was talking "rubbish" and that the remarks were nothing but "venom pouring out".

Andrew Dismore, Labour MP from Hendon, who has campaigned for the deportation of Abu Hamza, said: "There is sufficient evidence to prosecute Hamza from the things that he has said."

But the imam won backing from other Muslim leaders as well. Anjem Choudray, the Britain-based leader of the extremist group Al Muhajiroun, said Muslims "would not be shedding any tears" over the accident.

Choudray said: "We believe if anyone innocent dies, then that is something we would not wish on anyone. However, this craft did also have one Israeli army official on board, who is famous for his military escapades in Israel."

He said, "Especially at this time, Muslims would not be shedding any tears. Ultimately the US is a country at war with all Muslims and we know it is a sign from God."
 


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