KIDNAPPED IN YEMEN

Just finished it, I thought it was going to be good. It was excellent. This obviously contains spoliers, so if you are reading for fun, just buy the book. it is really worth it.

"Corporate American" with a taste for travel off the beaten track gets kidnapped, doesn't take it lying down and in the cross fire of being held as a human shield for not a short time either, she finds a rugged cool headed survivalist in herself and lives to tell the tale. Not only lives, but reappraises her life and follows the story of her kidnap wherever it may lead.

Obviously I was reading it, and if I was a journalist would have read it ages ago for the cross over with this blog. Her meeting with Hamza in Finsbury park is very interesting, she obviously arrived before they closed down the mosque, just before my interest in this story began. I will be very interested to hear her testimony in a New York court, as I will be to hear how much invovlement Hamza had over satellite phone in her kidnap.

The really interesting stuff for me was her encounter with Shahid Butt, and Hamza's sons Mustafa  and Mohssain Ghalian. It seems like she spent about the same amount of time as I did with them but in very different circumstances, as she spoke to them in a Yemeni jail. She seems in no doubt that they were on a mission to bomb British interests in Yemen, although she says that Hamza told her that he didn't know his sons had gone and told her he was angry with them.

She definitely saw a different Shahid Butt than I did, not surprisingly I suppose, but she reads a lot more into Mohssin's reticence than I did. I thought he was just a bit shy and didn't even realise he was part of the group I was being introduced to. I couldn't make any comment about either of them really, or about the merits of British relationships with Yemen whether they are a good thing, a bad thing or if Muslims should be doing something about it. I would imagine if you believed they were a bad thing and you believed in your religion as a Muslim it would feel like it was incumbent about you to do something about it, and according to the CIA training manuals the Encyclopedia of Afghan Jihad is based on, bombing strategic buildings and boats would do the trick, and if you were caught in the process your mates would probably kidnap some Westerners. I know Hamza has preached from the Koran about such things.

Mary Quinn is a great writer about this stuff. I sort of wish she would become a War on Terr-r journalist as she is way better than most of them. She says what she thinks about things no problem but she also tries to understand situations from all perspectives which is the best part of reading her story.


Mary Quin: Woman set to testify against 'terror' preacher Abu Hamza ..

ITALIAN JOB?

I didn't say it this guy did.


...Their lawyers had refuted claims that the cash was being used to finance terrorism..in The Daily Mail


...Mohammed Kamel Mostafa...was jailed for two years...Mohssin Ghailam... was jailed for four years...Hamza Kamel... got 2½ years...Four others received a total of more than 15 years...in The Sun (Who are themselves thieves who owe me money)


..

Now I know why these guys didn't want to make a film with me..

Gut feeling? I liked Mustafa and Mohssain. They have a fascinating untold story that I would really love to hear. What can I say? I'm glad they took up thieving from the rich rather than terrorism? They are obviously enterprising but maybe didn't have such a good start. I didn't really get to know either of them, Mohssain I only met the once and he didn't say a lot. So many young Muslims in London have a story of a boiling existance which careers between extreme, austere Islam and petty crime but for obvious reasons it is next to impossible to get it out of them.

I regret not sitting Atilla down away from Finsbury and speaking honestly to him rather than just pasively filming what he did and trying not to upset him. I feel the same about these two. Maybe worse because they are younger. Its pretty obvious from my blogging at the time I was in no position to sort my own shit out.

Three sons of hook-handed cleric Abu Hamza are facing jail after admitting taking part in a £1 million car ringing racket. The two-year plot targeted high value BMWs, Range Rovers and Mercedes that had been left for weeks in long-stay car parks.

Using false identities, conmen tricked the DVLA into diverting registration details from the real owners to a string of addresses. The fraudsters would then go to dealerships across London to claim the spare keys.

Hamza Kamel, 22, and Mohammed Mostafa, 27, who are sons of the former Finsbury Park Mosque imam, and his 28-year-old stepson Mohssin Ghailam, variously pleaded guilty to handling stolen goods, money laundering and fraud at Southwark Crown Court...

..

Whats the Use?

Don't ever try and film Muslims. Honestly. Meeting Abu Waleed and Mr Choudhary recently reminded me of the frustrating circular quandry I was in with Atilla for so many years. They believe TV is controlled by those with evil intentions. So what if I try and make something my way which involves TV? What if I try and make something which I think might be useful to the British public at large? Or do some straightforward journalism?

No really- they believe the stations are controlled by.. you get the idea.

Its not that they don't have previous experienece to go on. Seeing Mr Choudhary's group I am at a bit of a loss as to what I could concievably do with them. He makes himself available to TV, fairly predictable shows with predictable results. The nugget I need to make any headway into creating something different is the fundemental key to any documentary project- Access. Anyway, I'll keep trying. See what happens. I am quite into other stuff at the moment so I am in no hurry.

I went round to see Hajj a while back to enquire as to the welfare of Mr Hamza's sons now in custody. The news I had read online was news to him.

"If they have done this, they should pay the penalty." he said firmly.

In fairly vague terms he said he wasn't keen about what he heard from East London.

"Shouting about taking over England isn't any way to speak to the kaffirs. How will anyone learn about Islam if I first make them my enemy?" I think he said. Something along those lines anyway.

He always talks in quite glowing terms about the UK.

"The reason Islam is good in the UK is because we live amongst the best of the kaffirs." he told the young guys who were also round keeping him awake into the night. When a couple of them look at him questioningly, he lays down the law, repeating himself with finality and certainty. And thats it. And this guy stood on the other side of Hamza to Atilla. For the whole time I was in Finsbury. He is just TV gold.

I know by now that the main reason for these guys to speak to a kaffir is to try and bring him to Islam. One of the guys had another fairly good attempt with me.

"He understands it all. He knows all this is true." says Hajj.

I don't get this at all. We ended up talking about anal sex in more detail than I am used to. Why should I care if people have anal sex? Personally I would only do it to afemale if she asked me nicely. All these concepts around how people hold belief. Would that make a good film? God knows. If he or she exists they do anyway. Anyway I don't care. I just like people who I like for whatever reasons suits me and everyone else can fuck off.

Apart from that I've done a few disastrous gigs which have musically been OK. I didn't puke anyway. I have been learning how to put down slate floors which is ace. I love it. We taught ourselves plastering from a Youtube video with results we are happy with, saving oursleves hundreds of pounds. I was asked for some footage by someone in the National Front. This is my movie about them. I had to decline as I don't support the National Front though I don't doubt that any of the guys who I spoke to would make fascinating TV.

However you say things through the amplification of media would be distorted. I was talking to Mike the other day about how all the Muslims we have met want to be "Clones of the prophet". I can say that here, but if it gets any further this could sound like I was being seriously offensive to Muslims. What to do?

I was asked the other day to remove some comments from my youtube page which a Muslim in Canada found offensive. I quite like the way youtube comments are a serious lowest common denominator comment wise. I am pro freedom of speech and against censorship. I try to pretend I am above intelectual snobbery regarding those who comment in an err.. more expresive way than I do with less opportunities to get a grip on spelling than I had.

No. Really, its like running a fucking playground.

Here is a bit of sporadic conversation I had recently through my Youtube inbox

Youtuber: yo do u belive in all this shit and hatred people chat agenst the west ???????

Bones: Do I believe what?

Youtuber: all the shit them musilms about how they hate the west so much and all this crap of haterid and no pice

Bones: Do I believe "all the shit them musilms about how they hate the west so much and all this crap of haterid and no pice"? I don't believe or disbelieve anything. Does this answer your question?

I received no answer.

When I look at my webstats I often wonder what the fuck I am writing about myself. The most common searches which end up here are Antichrist cookbook, Squirtwoman, varitions on "Fucking paki", "Sand Nigger" etc. and a whole load of shit about lap dancing.

I've watched loads on the iPlayer. I am still addicted to Top Gear. I am really anti petrol head but I can't help it. I am addicted. I don't want to say how many times I watched these idiots jaunting across the States in muscle cars.

I am wondering if Charlie Brooker is going to save TV. His piece about advertising was excellent, as was his piece about TV writers about their craft. I just noticed his next target is documentaries.

Anything else? Oh yeah. I re read Stranger in a Strange land. A friend has a copy which boasted of being Heinlein's original manuscript discovered by his wife after his death, with a whole load of extra stuff which he had been asked to cut. This was before science fiction became the genre it is now. The publisher felt he should only take a chance on less words. Shaking the dust off their memories, everyone re read it and agreed it was better, so out it came.

What struck me straight away was in how much detail I remember this book as the last time I read it I was 14. As for the new words, they must have been "ifs" "ands" and "buts" because I couldn't find them. The next thing to occur to me was how much older I am reading it now. Last time I read this there was no internet, moblie phones, digital media etc which now date Heinleins referal to type writers, tape recording, libraries etc. He is still ahead with flying cars, one world government and 3D TV.

I am amazed by how much of the beliefs about life I have now were shaped by reading this book.

UPDATE FROM THE SUN

Mohamed Kamel Mostafa, 27, Hamza Mustafa Kamel, 22, and six other men allegedly targeted Mercedes, BMWs and Range Rovers.

They allegedly used fake documents to dupe dealerships into handing them duplicate keys — then took the cars.

The gang were also said to have used the log books as collateral for loans.

Westminster JPs remanded the brothers in custody

HAMZAS SONS

Two sons of hook-handed hate preacher Abu Hamza were last night charged with plotting to steal luxury cars.

Hamza Moustafa Kamel, 22, and Mohammed Kamel Moustafa, 27, will appear in court today with six others.

They also face two charges of conspiring to commit fraud, allegedly related to obtaining duplicate car keys and making false representations to secure a loan.

A fourth charge accuses them of knowingly "facilitating" the acquisition or control of stolen property.

They will appear before City of Westminster magistrates with Mohammed Chiadmi, 30, Abdul Chiadmi, 22, Mosshin Ghailan, 28, Khalid Jebari, 22, Hamza Mrimou, 29, and Ali Amel, 26.

Hamza, 50, was jailed for six years in 2004 for soliciting murder and inciting racial hatred. He faces extradition to the US for allegedly setting up an al-Qaeda training camp.

HEAT IN LADBROKE GROVE

OK. Met Jamal and Samir today. Baking hot in Ladbroke Groove. A Policeman actually offered me a bottle of water as I waited for them outside the tube station. Fucking nice country eh? The brothers whisked me off to Ladbroke Grove mosque, hidden away below the flyover, but still quite a majestic building in a simple London sort of way, standing more or less on its own.

After they prayed I found that the unknown driver of the vehicle was Shahid Butt, a character who had come across "bostin' like" (as they say in Birmingham where he is from) in the recent BBC Documentary Dont panic I'm Islamic. I am always surprised by "fundamentalist" reaction to the name "Socialist Wanker." Shahid laughed a lot- but said he didn't want to appear in it! We went to a fantastic little cafe, hidden away below a main road slipway for buses. It was like something from roadside Pakistan.

He told me that he had met Phil Rees who had made the documentary and built up some trust with him. He was aware of the editing process, Phil had taken about 15 minutes out of a five hour conversation. He was pleased with the results. I found out that the other young stranger who was with us was Mohssin Ghailan, a son of Abu Hamza and Mustapha Kamel's older brother. I had no idea as, unlike Mustapha, he looks nothing like Abu Hamza as he is adopted. He looks about 21 -and nothing like he has done time in a Yemeni jail either. He asked me what sort of questions I would like to ask him.

I told him I wanted to know what it was like growing up, being himself in Britain. He said he wanted to talk about his dad. The "preacher of hate." What he was like as a father. He did not want to be recognisable from the film but was up for doing it.

They had just gone to visit Mr. Hamza and they had much news to report on his condition. Apparently Shahid Butt is a very close friend of the family for many years and used to be involved in the running of Finsbury Park mosque 9 years ago and knows Mr. Hamza better than anyone.

Here is an account of his and Mohssin's trip to Yemen. He told me Hamza has never recruited terrorists and never told people to kill those of other races. He says he knows of no Muslim preacher in Britain who advocates terrorist acts in this country.

As for Mr. Hamza's condition they told me he has lots of infections on his stumps and because he has no access to his hands he is at the mercy of his doctors and the screws. They gave the impression he was in a bad way and believe it is only his Islamic faith which is keeping him going.

They told me of an incident where a completely unrelated white man had punched one of Hamza's medics because they were messing him around. The guy was not a Muslim and apparently spent time in solitary confinement for his trouble. They have a letter that another prisoner inside wrote to the Sun, accusing them of lying about Hamzas situation inside. They told me Hamza is kept away from other prisoners. They are scared of him talking to anyone. Five people have become muslims in Belmarsh as a result of meeting Mr. Hamza.

Apparently Mr. Hamza remembers me well, when they talk to him.