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Mayor gives £30,000 of taxpayers' money to Muslim group led by 'extremist'
Andrew Gilligan12.03.09
Mayor Boris Johnson has given at least £30,000 of taxpayers' money to an organisation co-controlled by an Islamist "extremist", the Standard can reveal.
Azad Ali praises a spiritual leader of al Qaeda on his blog, denies the Mumbai attacks were "terrorism" and quotes, apparently approvingly, a statement advocating the killing of British troops in Iraq.
He also criticises those Muslims who "tell people that Islam is a religion of peace".
He describes non-Muslims as "sinners" and says Muslims should "hate [non-Muslims'] disbelieving actions".
Mr Ali is the founding chairman, and current treasurer, of the Muslim Safety Forum, a group that has received at least £30,000 from City Hall since Mr Johnson's election last May.
He is also one of the Forum's two directors and its nominated contact for the Charity Commission.
The Forum's website says it was set up to challenge the "unfair focus on the Muslim community when it came to policing activities and enforcement of anti-terror policing legislation". It holds regular meetings with the police.
Mr Ali was suspended from his job as a civil servant in January after some of his views came to the attention of his employers.
However, City Hall payment lists seen by the Standard show that in the same month, his organisation received the latest of its £10,000 quarterly payments from the GLA.
It also received £10,000 in July and October last year, as well as at least £70,000 under the previous Mayor, Ken Livingstone. Its annual general meeting, in July, was addressed by Mr Johnson's deputy mayor, Richard Barnes.
Mr Ali's comments are made on his "Between the Lines" blog, hosted by the Islamic Forum Europe, a leading Islamist organisation closely associated with the radical East London Mosque. The Muslim Safety Forum is based at the mosque.
On 20 November last year, Mr Ali wrote in praise of Abdullah Azzam, Osama bin Laden's key mentor.
Mr Ali describes Azzam as one of the "few Muslims who promote the understanding of the term jihad in its comprehensive glory" as both a doctrine of "self-purification" and of "warfare". He adds: "Abdullah Azzam promoted that balance yet today he is viewed by some as a 'terrorist'...
"Self-censorship has taken many Muslims to the point where you can almost feel the contempt they have for jihad. We have had campaign after campaign that tells people Islam is peace...What peace does a man have when he is oppressed?"
In the same post, Mr Ali quotes Azzam's son, Huthaifa, as saying: "If I saw an American or British man wearing a soldier's uniform inside Iraq, I would kill him because that is my obligation... I respect this as the main instruction in my religion for jihad." Mr Ali adds: "There are some Muslims who go out of their way to deny the full meaning and understanding of the term jihad."
On 1 December, after the Mumbai attacks, Mr Ali engaged in repeated exchanges on his blog with a moderate Muslim calling himself "Sid". Sid said the attacks were "an act of Islamist terrorism, pure and simple". Mr Ali replied: "We disagree quite clearly," describing the attacks as "crimes".
Mr Ali's strong views were clear several months before Mr Johnson decided to continue with his group's City Hall funding.
In a blog post on 25 April last year, he criticised moderate Muslim writer Ziauddin Sardar for saying that non-Muslims should not be denounced as infidels.
"Some may argue that the word infidel... is a bit offensive - so what?" writes Mr Ali. "We should in general 'hate' the disbelieving actions of the non-Muslims but not them as a person..."
On 15 January this year, in a post on Gaza entitled "We are the Resistance II", Mr Ali describes Muslim moderates as "nothing but self-serving vultures, feeding on the dead flesh of the Palestinians" and attacks government policy towards "the Zionist terrorist state of Israel".
Three days later, he was suspended from his job as a Treasury civil servant. He faces disciplinary proceedings.
A spokesman for the Mayor said: "The Mayor is very concerned to discover that taxpayers' money has gone to this organisation.
"The commitment was made by the previous Mayor and the agreement was in place before the election. The Mayor has ensured that no further payments will be made when the outstanding agreement is concluded."
When contacted, Mr Ali refused to discuss his views with the Standard. He asked us to email a series of questions, to which he failed to respond.
A spokesman for the MSF, Naeem Darr, said that Mr Ali's involvement with the group was being reviewed.
He said: "We are going through a process at the moment of looking at the way the organisation is run to see if we can come to any conclusions as to what we should do in future.
"There will be some sort of hearing within the organisation on Azad Ali in the next month or so."
Reader views (34)
An over-the-top exageration of the truth may I say. Why is it that some newspapers always feel it is their duty to twist the truth in the public eye? As a non-muslim studying Islam, Mr Ali's comments have clearly been taken out of context, with all due respect. Please feel free to be gullible when reading certain artcles.
- Dbane, London
the sooner the election comes the better it will be a wake up call for all
- J J, uxbridge
Can I suggest that people read the whole article (right down to the last sentence) before firing off enraged missives. It clearly states that this "grant" was made by the previous mayor, and the current incumbent had to honour the contract (or presumably be taken to court and having to pay out a lot more of the taxpayers money).
- Maire, London
This is disgusting.
- Real, London
At least the Evening Standard which supported Boris to the hilt is finally showing some balance in their news coverage. I never thought I would see the day!
- Paul M, London
As a hard working tax payer of this useless country, I object totally to Boris handing any monies to extremists, and therefore, DEMAND that he credits OUR coffers forthwith. If you want to support such BOris, let it come out of your purse NOT ours!!!Shame on you.
- Maureen Cohen, London
Be careful Boris you're loosing it.
- Mike, London
Mark, you and I should set-up a foundation to expose government waste and receive a £10K GLA grant for it. Much better use of money.
- Constantine, London
This is so wrong. Since when should incompetent local officials be deciding how to hand out taxpayer's money? If taxpayers want to give money to chariry they can do it themselves and get a tax deduction. Enough is enough. As a citizen and taxpayer, I would like to know who will be accountable for this and why my tax money is used for such purpose.
- Constantine, London
There has to be a complete ban on any state assistance or funding of religious groups unless they can be shown to provide welfare assistance and have no connection with extremism or raising funds for overseas.
- Adam, Harrow, UK
More checks should be made on these organisations before handing over money.
- Ronnie, Billericay UK
do the words party and brewery spring to mind ?
- Mike Murphy, london
Investigate before paying taxpayer money, there are many fake charity organisations, who are just getting money in the name of Muslims. They are begging near the mosque. You dont know either money is going in proper hands.
- M A Sular, London
It doesn't look like Boris CAN be trusted by Londoners after all.
- Keith Price, Luton, England
I voted for Boris in part to stop this sort of thing (so reminiscent of Livinstone): let's hope its all a misunderstanding and something is done soon. We don't want to wake up in the future and find the BNP in power.
- Alan, London
this is a particle of livingston's legacy, disposing of millions of london taxpayers money to terrorists and crooks. we can only thank the great evening standard for bringing the truth to the public atttention
- Mark Armstrong, london. uk
Richard Barnbrook, you must be so angry. you will have your day, keep working hard as always, our future depends on it.
- Yvonne, harrow Weald
Why is it that people on power are such thickies?
- Malc, London,England
I am just glad I dont live in the UK any more.
- Glyn, Lucerne,CA,USA
Nothing to do with Boris. All to do with Ken. People like Azad Ali amaze me. He positions himself as a 'real' muslim, condeming liberal muslims and yet chooses to live here and accepts funding from the government. It's all a big pose.
- Ben Farrell, London
I thought we voted for Boris to stop this nonsense!
- Ian, London Eng
WHY?
- Vince Matherick, south chard
I sometimes wonder if this expensive second layer of government is worth having, full stop?
- Graham, Ilford Essex
A spokesman for the Mayor said: "The Mayor is very concerned to discover that taxpayers' money has gone to this organisation.
"The commitment was made by the previous Mayor and the agreement was in place before the election. The Mayor has ensured that no further payments will be made when the outstanding agreement is concluded."
- St, London
Boris what are you doing and why ?
- Joe, Swanley Kent
The three previous commenters (as I write, the only commenters) appear to have read the headline and a few paragraphs and no further.
The article makes it clear where this originated and that there is an agreement in place. One can assume that the cost of reneging on the existing agreement would be far greater (and more beneficial to the group concerned) than just bringing it to a conclusion at the appointed time.
Those criticising Boris are pointing their guns in the wrong direction, and one has to wonder just why they are doing so in the face of the facts presented about why all this started in the first place, and by whose authority.
- John Ward, Chatham, England
Boris,
Please don't become another Ken!
- Jamie, london
whats new
Our own old people living in poverty, the very people who saved our country and look at the state of it now.
money for this, money for that. I still have my vote and cant what to use it.
- Yvonne, harrow Weald
Boris is lucky that he is a Tory. If he were not the Media would go ballistic. With Boris the press just laugh it off as another example of Boris and his warped sense of humour. He will never get the Press condemnation that he deserves.
- Humph, Acton England
10k is being spent on an organisation, not on him! What do we want the police to do next? Start charging us for thoughts and ideas that we all hold? What kind of society would that be - where everyone is obliged to conform to the government line?
- Richard, London
What is going on with this madness, do we have no politicians with common sense anymore ? ? ?
- Eoin Mcgreeghan, Derry, NI
Insane! Just who is this man Boris Johnson? Why would he support a Muslim extremist group? What's going to be done about it? Don't the people of London object?
- Ben Adamson, New York, NY
What on earth are we doing funding organisations like this anyway? I don't go to work to pay for people to complain to the police. Can I set up a group to complain about Police attention on white motorists at speed traps and get GLA funding? What are they spending £10,000 on?
- Mark, London
You Boris are getting far too involved with Religious problems which don't concern you.
If you have any cash to spare send it to me,after my 40p Pension rise I could do with the extra pound or so.
- David., Chertsey.UK.
