The son of extremist cleric Abu Hamza blamed his life of crime on his father's imprisonment for terrorism.
Yasser Kamel, 31, made the claim in an English court through his lawyer as he was sentenced to jail for drug dealing.
Abu Hamza, whose real name is Mustafa Kamel Mustafa, was sentenced to seven years in jail in the UK for hate speech. In 2015 he was sentenced to life in jail in the US for terrorism offences.
From 1997, Abu Hamza was an imam at Finsbury Park mosque, in north London, reportedly attended by September 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui, some of the London Tube bombers and shoe bomber Richard Reid.
Abu Hamza was affiliated to Al Muhajiroun, the militant extremist Salafist group. He publicly praised acts of terrorism, including the September 11 attacks in the US.
Kamel was jailed for four years this week for drug offences.
He was caught with cocaine, amphetamines and ketamine worth £30,000 ($41,839) when police raided his flat in Park Royal, London, in December 2019.
He admitted two counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs and one count of possession with intent to supply Class B drugs.
His lawyer, William Evans, told Southwark Crown Court that Kamel went off the rails after his father’s well-publicised exploits.
"He is one of the children of Abu Hamza, the preacher convicted in the UK and extradited," he said.
“The impact upon him of what happened to his father was traumatic. He feels he has suffered significantly as a result of what his father committed when he was only a child.
“This is a picture of a 14-year-old child whose life was turned upside down.
“It’s no coincidence that his offending started in 2008 when he was 18 and finished prior to this in 2012 when he was 22 and things concluded with his father’s extradition.”
Kamel was 14 when his father was first arrested and 22 when the preacher was extradited to the US.
Abu Hamza was sentenced in Britain on a terrorist charge and six counts of soliciting murder.
In October 2015, he was extradited to the US to face 11 charges related to terrorism and kidnapping.
His crimes included facilitating satellite communications between kidnappers for a 1998 attack in Yemen in which four tourists were killed, supporting plans to open an Al Qaeda training camp in the US state of Oregon and sending someone to a training camp in Afghanistan.
The court was told Kamel found it “extremely difficult” to find employment once his identity became known.
“He has struggled for any kind of normality. That culminated in 2019 to changing his name from Yasser Kamal ... he now calls himself Jamal Luciano to distance himself from that,” the lawyer said.
“He believes he is under surveillance; whether he is right I don’t know. His family certainly have been; he may still be.”
Judge Deborah Taylor sentenced Kamal to four years in prison.
“There is evidence you were dealing to individuals, the drugs were high purity and the circumstances of the drugs show you have close links to the original source and the expectation of substantial financial gain,” she said.
Another of Abu Hamza’s sons, Mohammed Kamel Mostafa, was sentenced to jail in Yemen for plotting to blow up British and American targets.
Abu Hamza is suing the US for mistreatment and seeking release from jail on compassionate grounds.
He said the hooks he uses for hands were confiscated by prison guards and that he has been subjected to “inhumane and degrading conditions”.
The%20specs
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The five new places of worship
Church of South Indian Parish
St Andrew's Church Mussaffah branch
St Andrew's Church Al Ain branch
St John's Baptist Church, Ruwais
Church of the Virgin Mary and St Paul the Apostle, Ruwais
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:
Ajax 2-3 Tottenham
Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate
Final: June 1, Madrid
How green is the expo nursery?
Some 400,000 shrubs and 13,000 trees in the on-site nursery
An additional 450,000 shrubs and 4,000 trees to be delivered in the months leading up to the expo
Ghaf, date palm, acacia arabica, acacia tortilis, vitex or sage, techoma and the salvadora are just some heat tolerant native plants in the nursery
Approximately 340 species of shrubs and trees selected for diverse landscape
The nursery team works exclusively with organic fertilisers and pesticides
All shrubs and trees supplied by Dubai Municipality
Most sourced from farms, nurseries across the country
Plants and trees are re-potted when they arrive at nursery to give them room to grow
Some mature trees are in open areas or planted within the expo site
Green waste is recycled as compost
Treated sewage effluent supplied by Dubai Municipality is used to meet the majority of the nursery’s irrigation needs
Construction workforce peaked at 40,000 workers
About 65,000 people have signed up to volunteer
Main themes of expo is ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’ and three subthemes of opportunity, mobility and sustainability.
Expo 2020 Dubai to open in October 2020 and run for six months
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen
Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide
Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content
Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
More on animal trafficking
World Cricket League Division 2
In Windhoek, Namibia - Top two teams qualify for the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, which starts on March 4.
UAE fixtures
Thursday February 8, v Kenya; Friday February 9, v Canada; Sunday February 11, v Nepal; Monday February 12, v Oman; Wednesday February 14, v Namibia; Thursday February 15, final
The biog
Marital status: Separated with two young daughters
Education: Master's degree from American Univeristy of Cairo
Favourite book: That Is How They Defeat Despair by Salwa Aladian
Favourite Motto: Their happiness is your happiness
Goal: For Nefsy to become his legacy long after he is gon
Quick pearls of wisdom
Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”
Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.”
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere
Director: Scott Cooper
Starring: Jeremy Allen White, Odessa Young, Jeremy Strong
Rating: 4/5
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
Five ways to get fit like Craig David (we tried for seven but ran out of time)
Start the week as you mean to go on. So get your training on strong on a Monday.
Train hard, but don’t take it all so seriously that it gets to the point where you’re not having fun and enjoying your friends and your family and going out for nice meals and doing that stuff.
Think about what you’re training or eating a certain way for — don’t, for example, get a six-pack to impress somebody else or lose weight to conform to society’s norms. It’s all nonsense.
Get your priorities right.
And last but not least, you should always, always chill on Sundays.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The specs: 2017 Dodge Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn
Price, base / as tested: Dhxxx
Engine: 5.7L V8
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 395hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 556Nm @ 3,950rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 12.7L / 100km
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
Tuesday's fixtures
Kyrgyzstan v Qatar, 5.45pm
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The line up
Friday: Giggs, Sho Madjozi and Masego
Saturday: Nas, Lion Bbae, Roxanne Shante and DaniLeigh
Sole DXB runs from December 6 to 8 at Dubai Design District. Weekend pass is Dh295 while a one day pass is Dh195. Tickets are available from www.soledxb.com
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THE 12 BREAKAWAY CLUBS
England
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur
Italy
AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus
Spain
Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid
