Mohammed Junaid Babar left prison still advocating violence
Newly unsealed documents shed more light on terrorist who set up camp for jihadis attended by 7/7 bomber
A New York terrorist who set up a training camp for British jihadis, including the leader of the 7/7 bombers, Mohammad Sidique Khan, was still expressing support for violence against Americans in "occupied" Muslim countries at the time of his early release in December, it has emerged.
Mohammed Junaid Babar was facing a possible sentence of 70 years for his terrorism activities, which also included gun running, supplying money and equipment to senior al-Qaida figures, and two attempts to assassinate General Pervez Musharraf, the former Pakistani president.
The Guardian disclosed last month that a New York judge sentenced Babar to time served, which amounted to four and a half years in prison, after government lawyers described his post-arrest co-operation as "extraordinary".
But newly unsealed documents reveal that at the time of sentencing, government representatives believed that Babar still supported the killing of US soldiers and civilians in "occupied" Muslim countries.
The pre-sentence report, known as a 5K1, submitted by the US attorney's office, stated: "Babar has advised that he supports the killing of Americans (both military and civilian) in Muslim countries 'occupied' by the United States."
Charles Schumer, a Democratic senator for New York, has asked why Babar was set free given his stated views. "I'd like to see an explanation why somebody who still expresses violence should be let out," Schumer told the US network MSNBC. "We certainly need a good, strong explanation from the authorities."
When asked by the sentencing judge about Babar's support for violence against US citizens, Brendan McGuire, assistant attorney for the southern New York district, said: "I do believe that that is Mr Babar's view as of today. [However] I think there is a distinction, and the government draws a distinction between Mr Babar's views and Mr Babar's intent on acting on that view."
The report also reveals new information about Babar's activities before his arrest. Previously it had been widely believed that he had come to the attention of US authorities after giving a televised interview in November 2001. In the interview with a British journalist, Babar said: "I did not feel any remorse for the Americans [who died] ... I am willing to kill the Americans. I will kill every American that I see in Afghanistan. And every American soldier I see in Pakistan."
However, the 5K1 report states that Babar first became known to law enforcement through his activities with the New York branch of the British fundamentalist group al-Muhajiroun before 9/11. He also had a previous criminal conviction for driving without insurance for which he was fined $75.
This raises further questions about why Babar was not placed on a no-fly list as he travelled between Pakistan and the UK on numerous occasions between 2002 and 2004.
The report also describes how:
• In 2003 the leader of the Crevice plotters, Omar Khyam, gave Babar a black grocery bag filled with what he said was the poison ricin (Babar stated that he later disposed of it).
• Babar met al-Qaida's number three in command on four separate occasions – the last just a week before his departure in 2004 to the US, where he was subsequently arrested.
• Babar returned to the US to make money as a taxi driver to support his wife and child, who had stayed in Pakistan.
• Babar decided to co-operate with US authorities almost from the moment of his arrest and met US government and foreign government figures on nearly 100 occasions. Information from these meetings was "regularly disseminated" by the FBI to other intelligence agencies.
Mohammed Junaid Babar was facing a possible sentence of 70 years for his terrorism activities, which also included gun running, supplying money and equipment to senior al-Qaida figures, and two attempts to assassinate General Pervez Musharraf, the former Pakistani president.
The Guardian disclosed last month that a New York judge sentenced Babar to time served, which amounted to four and a half years in prison, after government lawyers described his post-arrest co-operation as "extraordinary".
But newly unsealed documents reveal that at the time of sentencing, government representatives believed that Babar still supported the killing of US soldiers and civilians in "occupied" Muslim countries.
The pre-sentence report, known as a 5K1, submitted by the US attorney's office, stated: "Babar has advised that he supports the killing of Americans (both military and civilian) in Muslim countries 'occupied' by the United States."
Charles Schumer, a Democratic senator for New York, has asked why Babar was set free given his stated views. "I'd like to see an explanation why somebody who still expresses violence should be let out," Schumer told the US network MSNBC. "We certainly need a good, strong explanation from the authorities."
When asked by the sentencing judge about Babar's support for violence against US citizens, Brendan McGuire, assistant attorney for the southern New York district, said: "I do believe that that is Mr Babar's view as of today. [However] I think there is a distinction, and the government draws a distinction between Mr Babar's views and Mr Babar's intent on acting on that view."
The report also reveals new information about Babar's activities before his arrest. Previously it had been widely believed that he had come to the attention of US authorities after giving a televised interview in November 2001. In the interview with a British journalist, Babar said: "I did not feel any remorse for the Americans [who died] ... I am willing to kill the Americans. I will kill every American that I see in Afghanistan. And every American soldier I see in Pakistan."
However, the 5K1 report states that Babar first became known to law enforcement through his activities with the New York branch of the British fundamentalist group al-Muhajiroun before 9/11. He also had a previous criminal conviction for driving without insurance for which he was fined $75.
This raises further questions about why Babar was not placed on a no-fly list as he travelled between Pakistan and the UK on numerous occasions between 2002 and 2004.
The report also describes how:
• In 2003 the leader of the Crevice plotters, Omar Khyam, gave Babar a black grocery bag filled with what he said was the poison ricin (Babar stated that he later disposed of it).
• Babar met al-Qaida's number three in command on four separate occasions – the last just a week before his departure in 2004 to the US, where he was subsequently arrested.
• Babar returned to the US to make money as a taxi driver to support his wife and child, who had stayed in Pakistan.
• Babar decided to co-operate with US authorities almost from the moment of his arrest and met US government and foreign government figures on nearly 100 occasions. Information from these meetings was "regularly disseminated" by the FBI to other intelligence agencies.
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