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Al-Ahram Weekly 25 - 31 March 1999 Issue No. 422 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 25 - 31 March 1999 Issue No. 422
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Focus Profile Features Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters London militants released
By Jailan Halawi
British authorities released three Islamist militants on Friday, arrested just four days earlier. They included two Egyptians: Mustafa Kamel, better known as Abu-Hamza El-Masri, leader of Ansar Al-Sharia (Advocates of Islamic Law) group, and Yasser Serri, sentenced to death in absentia by an Egyptian military court in 1994 for plotting an attack against then Prime Minister Atef Sidki. Little is known about the third, Abou-Emad. The three were investigated in connection with papers seized from their homes.
"I was surprised by a large number of British police forces breaking down the front door of my house at dawn on 15 March," El-Masri recalled. "They made me put a plastic bag over my head and informed me that I was under arrest in connection with terrorism." He added that police escorted his family to a hotel but he was taken to a unit reserved for those arrested in connection to terrorism -- such as Irish Republican Army activists -- in central London.
Police told El-Masri that he faced charges related to terrorist activity on British soil and planning terrorist acts outside Britain. They specifically asked about an interview published in the London-based Arabic-language newspaper Al-Hayat, in which he spoke about his latest invention to fight "arrogant Western powers", particularly the United States. El-Masri's invention was described as "air-bound mines", or flying bombs tied to balloons that supposedly could target US warplanes heading to bomb Arab and Islamic countries.
Investigators asked El-Masri about his ties to the Aden Islamic Army, a terrorist group active in Yemen, and the statements issued by Ansar Al-Sharia regarding developments in Yemen. "They told me that the first charge, terrorist activity on British soil, would be dropped while the second, planning terrorist acts abroad, would be re-investigated in May. I was also told that I would be released in the morning," he said.
In a telephone interview with Serri shortly after his release, he told Al-Ahram Weekly that he was freed because he had not been charged with anything. "They definitely wanted to find anything to use against me, but they did not. They broke into my house, seized some papers dealing with human rights cases, had them translated and asked me about each case. I refused to reply and told them that they could either press charges or release me," he said.
Serri added that he did not believe that pressure by the Egyptian government was behind his arrest. "The British do not yield to pressure by an Arab country," he said. It is more likely, he continued, that Britain bowed to pressure from the United States, which has been leading a worldwide campaign against suspected associates of Saudi dissident Osama bin Laden. "This is why we have always asked the British not to be America's lackey," he said.
Serri also said he did not believe he would be extradited. "The best thing about the British is their profound respect for, and commitment to, the law. They also know that handing us over to an Arab country means that we will face an unfair trial," he said.
Serri added that British authorities are still examining the documents they seized from his home, but said he was confident they would not find reason to file charges against him.
Both Serri and El-Masri denied that they were subjected to ill treatment during their brief detention. They said they wished that conditions in Arab jails were anywhere near those of British prisons and that human rights were respected as much as theirs were.
Shortly after the arrests, Yemeni Interior Minister Hussein Arab said his government would continue to collect evidence against El-Masri, linking him to terrorist activities in Yemen. El-Masri's son is one of 10 militants standing trial in Yemen for involvement in terrorist activities. Yemen requested El-Masri's extradition in January, claiming that he too was involved in plotting acts of terror.
El-Masri, who lost his hands and one eye while fighting Soviet troops in Afghanistan, has repeatedly expressed his hatred for the United States and urged the targeting of American military personnel as well as civilians. He has also publicly praised bin Laden.
Egypt had requested Serri's extradition but the demand was not met as a result of legal complications and the fact that his papers are at the British Home Office pending a decision on his request for asylum.
