A school administrator was convicted on Friday of trying recruit a 300-strong children’s army to carry out terrorist attacks on the UK parliament, embassies and dozens of high-profile targets in London.
Umar Haque, 25, showed beheading videos during Islamic studies classes he ran at a mosque and a £3,000-a-year private school and persuaded children as young as 11 to take part in role-playing exercises simulating murderous attacks on police officers.
“We are a death squad sent by Allah and his messengers to avenge my brothers’ blood,” he told an accomplice during a conversation secretly recorded by police.
A jury at London’s Old Bailey court convicted Haque on Friday of planning terror attacks with two accomplices after authorities failed to spot that the untrained teacher was secretly grooming pupils.
After the verdict, Haque was dragged from the dock by officers as he ranted: “You will clearly see Islamic State establish itself in the Arabian Peninsula and that droughts will affect Europe and America. You will remember my warning."
The court heard that Haque showed ISIL propaganda video to groups of youngsters at an Islamic private school in east London without senior staff knowing what was going on. Nevertheless, the Lantern School of Knowledge for 100 boys aged 11-16 was rated ‘outstanding’ by independent inspectors at the height of his activity in late 2015.
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A report cited school visits to parliament and the law courts as good examples of promoting students’ understanding of democracy and the rule of law. Police believe Haque intended to target those places.
Two years later, and after police exposed the activities of Haque, inspectors revised their opinion last month from outstanding to “requires improvement”.
After the verdict, the deputy head of the inspectorate, Matthew Coffey said: “It is of deep regret that this individual was able to work within the independent school system and expose his warped ideology to children.”
Police revealed that 35 youngsters are currently undergoing long-time supervision by authorities because of the attempted indoctrination by Haque at the school and mosque where he worked.
At the mosque in Barking, east London, Haque focused on children aged 12 to 14 during Islamic studies classes in a large tent. He showed them videos and organised physical training for the pupils, including mock fighting and races to prepare them for an attack by ISIL.
He arranged ‘martyr’s’ vs ‘police’ training exercises and showed them how to sever necks with their knives, the court was told.
“Umar has been teaching us how to fight, do push-ups, given strength and within six years he was planning to do a big attack on London,” one pupil told police. “He wants a group of 300 men. He's training us now so by the time I'm in Year 10 (aged 14-15) we will be physically strong enough to fight.”
Haque told them that they would suffer after death, go to hell and their homes would burn down if they told of what was happening. Police believe that he had access to 250 children and tried to radicalise nearly half of them, telling them they needed to prepare for martyrdom.
“He abused his position at those venues, tried and did radicalise vulnerable children from the ages of 11 to 14,” said Dean Haydon, the head of the anti-terrorist unit at the Metropolitan Police.
He said the boys were “paralysed with fear” and nobody raised the alarm. “We almost had a wall of silence,” said the officer.
Reports at the weekend suggested that the government was set to crack down on out-of-hours tuition centres because of fears of radicalisation. “More needs to be done to ensure that these weak spots are addressed if we are going to avoid a generation of children being warped by this gruesome ideology,” saidEmma Webb, a research fellow at the Henry Jackson Society thinktank.
The grooming only came to light after Haque’s passport was revoked after he attempted to board a flight to Istanbul, with the apparent aim of joining ISIL. An examination of his mobile phone showed his interest in Syria and beheading.
Frustrated by his failure to fight overseas, he turned his attention to targets in the UK, the Old Bailey heard.
He declared himself to be an ISIL supporter in court, but claimed he never had any intention of carrying out attacks he detailed in notebooks found at his home. The notebooks identified 30 targets including police, embassies and shopping venues.
Haque, born to Bangladeshi parents in east London, became radicalised after watching videos by Anwar Al Awlaki, the American propagandist for Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula who was killed in a US drone strike in 2011.
He was caught on secret police probes admiring an attack in March last year when a British extremist mowed down and killed four pedestrians before stabbing a policeman to death guarding the gates of parliament. He suggested that non-believers should be “annihilated off this earth”.
On another occasion he was heard chanting in his car: “We gonna kill so many… they gonna regret ever getting in to the war with Islamic State”.
Police said they arrested Haque and his three co-accused earlier than they would normally have done because of the threat to children at the school.
Abuthaher Mamun, 19, Muhammad Abid, 27, like Haque from east London, were convicted of helping him with the plot.
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
The Programme
Saturday, October 26: ‘The Time That Remains’ (2009) by Elia Suleiman
Saturday, November 2: ‘Beginners’ (2010) by Mike Mills
Saturday, November 16: ‘Finding Vivian Maier’ (2013) by John Maloof and Charlie Siskel
Tuesday, November 26: ‘All the President’s Men’ (1976) by Alan J Pakula
Saturday, December 7: ‘Timbuktu’ (2014) by Abderrahmane Sissako
Saturday, December 21: ‘Rams’ (2015) by Grimur Hakonarson
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Other simple ideas for sushi rice dishes
Cheat’s nigiri
This is easier to make than sushi rolls. With damp hands, form the cooled rice into small tablet shapes. Place slices of fresh, raw salmon, mackerel or trout (or smoked salmon) lightly touched with wasabi, then press, wasabi side-down, onto the rice. Serve with soy sauce and pickled ginger.
Easy omurice
This fusion dish combines Asian fried rice with a western omelette. To make, fry cooked and cooled sushi rice with chopped vegetables such as carrot and onion and lashings of sweet-tangy ketchup, then wrap in a soft egg omelette.
Deconstructed sushi salad platter
This makes a great, fuss-free sharing meal. Arrange sushi rice on a platter or board, then fill the space with all your favourite sushi ingredients (edamame beans, cooked prawns or tuna, tempura veggies, pickled ginger and chilli tofu), with a dressing or dipping sauce on the side.
SPECS
Mini John Cooper Works Clubman and Mini John Cooper Works Countryman
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The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
When is VAR used?
• Goals
• Penalty decisions
• Direct red-card incidents
• Mistaken identity
WISH
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Barcelona v Liverpool, Wednesday, 11pm (UAE).
Second leg
Liverpool v Barcelona, Tuesday, May 7, 11pm
Games on BeIN Sports
De De Pyaar De
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The specs
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MATCH INFO
Wales 1 (Bale 45 3')
Croatia 1 (Vlasic 09')
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
