London cleric Abu Hamza’s terrorism trial under way in New York
From his perch as a prominent imam at a north London mosque, Abu Hamza al-Masri sent devoted followers around the world - from Oregon to Afghanistan - to pursue violent jihad against non-believers, a federal prosecutor told jurors in New York.
From his perch as a prominent imam at a north London mosque, Abu Hamza al-Masri sent devoted followers around the world - from Oregon to Afghanistan - to pursue violent jihad against non-believers, a federal prosecutor told jurors in New York.
"His goal was clear, it was simple, and it was vicious," assistant US attorney Edward Kim said on Thursday in Manhattan federal court at the start of Abu Hamza's trial on terrorism-related charges. "Abu Hamza was not just a preacher of religion, he was a trainer of terrorists."
Prosecutors accuse the one-eyed, handless cleric with trying to set up a jihadist training camp in Oregon and aiding militants who took 16 tourists hostage in Yemen in 1998 in an operation that ended with the deaths of three Britons and one Australian. They also say he provided material support to al-Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan.
But Joshua Dratel, Abu Hamza's attorney, told jurors that while Abu Hamza may have been guilty of using inflammatory rhetoric, he had never participated in criminal activity. "These are views, not acts," he said.
The opening statements on Thursday drew a packed courtroom, including Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara.
Wearing a light blue shirt and grey pants, Abu Hamza held a pen in the prosthetic hook he uses on his right arm. He was injured in Afghanistan in the 1980s.
Abu Hamza, who is using his birth name of Mustafa Kamel Mustafa during the trial, became known in London for his fiery sermons at the Finsbury Park mosque, where British authorities say he had contact with some of the world's most well-known militants.