Lost_lady
23-01-07, 19:20
UK Monitors "All" Muslim Pilgrims
CAIRO — UK spy chiefs are putting on the terror watch list every single British Muslim who travels to the holy city of Makkah to perform hajj or umra to filter out those who might be linked to Al-Qaeda, a leading British newspaper revealed on Sunday, January 21.
"They (the spy chiefs) said that every British Muslim who makes the pilgrimage to Mecca was monitored," a well-placed security official told The Times.
The internal and external intelligence services, MI5 and MI6 respectively, are tracking up to 100,000 trips made to the holy lands, he added.
The intelligence operation is thought to have been launched after the 2005 attacks, according to the paper.
MI5 officials have said that at least two of the suicide bombers who carried out the terrorist attacks had visited Makkah.
Every able-bodied adult Muslim — who can financially afford the trip — must perform hajj once in their lifetime.
There are no official estimates of the number of British Muslims who performed hajj this year.
Britain is home to a sizable Muslim minority of nearly 1.8 million.
The minority has been in the eye of the storm since the terrorist attacks on London transport.
Saudi Cooperation
A government official says MI5 Director General Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller cited the "Mecca operation" in talks with the attorney general over UK-Saudi ties.
The intelligence trawl was cited by the the MI5 Director General Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller and MI6 Chief Sir John Scarlett as a strong reason to maintain ties with Saudi Arabia after the latter threatened to break them off over an alleged bribery scandal.
"They made it clear to (Attorney General Lord) Goldsmith that they were concerned about the implications for national security of losing Saudi cooperation," said the security official.
The British Serious Fraud Office dropped last month an investigation into allegations that Britain's main defense contractor BAE Systems established a slush fund for some members of the Saudi royal family to help secure a contract with the country in the 1980s.
The move was prompted by Saudi threats to sever its security and intelligence links with Britain, posing a danger to the national interest.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said last week that continuing the probe would have had "devastating" consequences for relations between Britain and Saudi Arabia.
Condemned
Ghayasuddin Siddiqui, leader of the non-governmental organization Muslim Parliament, has condemned the so-called "Mecca Operation."
"It is absolutely wrong that people who are going to Mecca for entirely religious purposes should be monitored by the security services," he said.
Security sources told The Independent in July Britain's internal intelligence agency, MI5, and police have been spying on 8,000 people through information gathered from colleges, mosques, internet websites and agents on suspicion of being Al-Qaeda sympathizers and future terrorists.
A report by the government's privacy watchdog said last year that Britain was becoming a "Big Brother" society where the lives of millions were monitored and tracked from cradle to grave.
It said more and more personal data is being collected and stored by both state and commercial organizations.
A 2006 document by the British Education Ministry has recommended lecturers and university staff spy on Muslim students on suspicious involvement in "extremist" activities.
http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_C&cid=1168265758528&pagename=Zone-English-News/NWELayout
CAIRO — UK spy chiefs are putting on the terror watch list every single British Muslim who travels to the holy city of Makkah to perform hajj or umra to filter out those who might be linked to Al-Qaeda, a leading British newspaper revealed on Sunday, January 21.
"They (the spy chiefs) said that every British Muslim who makes the pilgrimage to Mecca was monitored," a well-placed security official told The Times.
The internal and external intelligence services, MI5 and MI6 respectively, are tracking up to 100,000 trips made to the holy lands, he added.
The intelligence operation is thought to have been launched after the 2005 attacks, according to the paper.
MI5 officials have said that at least two of the suicide bombers who carried out the terrorist attacks had visited Makkah.
Every able-bodied adult Muslim — who can financially afford the trip — must perform hajj once in their lifetime.
There are no official estimates of the number of British Muslims who performed hajj this year.
Britain is home to a sizable Muslim minority of nearly 1.8 million.
The minority has been in the eye of the storm since the terrorist attacks on London transport.
Saudi Cooperation
A government official says MI5 Director General Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller cited the "Mecca operation" in talks with the attorney general over UK-Saudi ties.
The intelligence trawl was cited by the the MI5 Director General Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller and MI6 Chief Sir John Scarlett as a strong reason to maintain ties with Saudi Arabia after the latter threatened to break them off over an alleged bribery scandal.
"They made it clear to (Attorney General Lord) Goldsmith that they were concerned about the implications for national security of losing Saudi cooperation," said the security official.
The British Serious Fraud Office dropped last month an investigation into allegations that Britain's main defense contractor BAE Systems established a slush fund for some members of the Saudi royal family to help secure a contract with the country in the 1980s.
The move was prompted by Saudi threats to sever its security and intelligence links with Britain, posing a danger to the national interest.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said last week that continuing the probe would have had "devastating" consequences for relations between Britain and Saudi Arabia.
Condemned
Ghayasuddin Siddiqui, leader of the non-governmental organization Muslim Parliament, has condemned the so-called "Mecca Operation."
"It is absolutely wrong that people who are going to Mecca for entirely religious purposes should be monitored by the security services," he said.
Security sources told The Independent in July Britain's internal intelligence agency, MI5, and police have been spying on 8,000 people through information gathered from colleges, mosques, internet websites and agents on suspicion of being Al-Qaeda sympathizers and future terrorists.
A report by the government's privacy watchdog said last year that Britain was becoming a "Big Brother" society where the lives of millions were monitored and tracked from cradle to grave.
It said more and more personal data is being collected and stored by both state and commercial organizations.
A 2006 document by the British Education Ministry has recommended lecturers and university staff spy on Muslim students on suspicious involvement in "extremist" activities.
http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_C&cid=1168265758528&pagename=Zone-English-News/NWELayout