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Shooting of man sparks confusion
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5045104.stm
Scene of raid
There is growing confusion about how a man was shot during a huge police anti-terrorism raid in east London.
Mohammed Abdul Kahar, 23, was hit in the shoulder by a bullet during the raid in Forest Gate on Friday.
Mr Kahar's lawyer said he was shot by police without warning. But police have not confirmed they did fire the shot.
The two brothers accused of being involved in a terrorist chemical plot have protested their innocence, according to their solicitors.
Security sources told the BBC they had had intelligence that there was a "viable" chemical device in the house.
Intelligence had suggested it was a potentially fatal device that could produce casualty figures in double or even triple figures.
Mr Kahar is in hospital under armed guard. His brother, Abul Koyair, is being held at Paddington Green police station.
Their lawyers said that Mr Kahar is expected to be released from hospital on Sunday and taken to the same police station for questioning.
BBC Home Affairs Correspondent Daniel Sandford explained why there was confusion over the shooting.
He said the Metropolitan Police have never said a warning was given. And the only official statement about the shooting - from the head of the anti-terrorist branch Peter Clarke - did not say police shot the man.
The statement said only that a 23-year-old man had received a gunshot wound.
Comment
Neither the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC), which is investigating the incident, or the Met Police have made an official comment on the raid.
Kate Roxburgh, who represents Mr Kahar, gave an account of the events leading up to her client being shot in the shoulder during an operation that involved about 250 police officers.
She said: "He was woken up about four in the morning by screams from downstairs, got out of bed in his pyjamas obviously unarmed, nothing in his hands and hurrying down the stairs.
She said he was shot "without any warning" as he came down the stairs.
"He wasn't asked to freeze, given any warning and didn't know the people in his house were police officers until after he was shot," she added.
She said Mr Kahar was "lucky still to be alive".
The IPCC has said it would use its own investigators to "examine the circumstances surrounding the discharge of a police firearm".
Meanwhile, Julian Young, acting for Mr Koyair, 20, said his client "denies any involvement in the commission, preparation, or instigation of terrorist offences".
Speaking after a closed court hearing in central London - at which police were given permission to hold both men until Wednesday - the solicitor said Mr Koyair was due to be interviewed by officers again on Sunday morning.
He added that Mr Kahar was expected to be released from hospital around lunchtime and be taken to Paddington Green high security police station.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke said Friday's operation was planned in response to "specific intelligence".
But the operation has angered some locals, prompting a leaflet to be circulated announcing a meeting next week to discuss the raid.
It states: "We cannot comment on this individual case but we know many such raids have been against innocent people."
Officers from MI5 are thought to have been watching a group of British young people of Bangladeshi origin for weeks.
Their e-mails, phone calls and movements were logged and the suspicion was they were planning a terrorist attack in the UK.
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Terror suspects protest innocence
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5045104.stm
It was also claimed that Mohammed Abdul Kahar, 23, was shot without warning in Friday's raid at Forest Gate, London.
He is in hospital under armed guard. His brother, Abul Koyair, is being held at Paddington Green police station.
Security sources told the BBC they had had intelligence there was a "viable" chemical device in the house.
Intelligence had suggested it was a potentially fatal device that could produce casualty figures in double or even triple figures.
POLICE SHOOTING GUIDELINES
Police officers can shoot "to stop an imminent threat to life"
A firearms officer should identify themselves and give an oral warning of intent to shoot
Officers should not fire warning shots except in "most serious and exceptional" circumstances
Shots should be aimed at the central body mass
The Operation Kratos [shoot-to-kill] policy allows officers to shoot at the head without warning if they believe the suspect may detonate a bomb
Kratos does not require police to see a "suicide jacket" before opening fire
Profile: The IPCC
According to BBC home affairs correspondent Margaret Gilmore they do not believe it would be a sophisticated bomb, but a homemade device.
Kate Roxburgh, who represents Mr Kahar, gave an account of the events leading up to her client being shot in the shoulder during an operation that involved about 250 police officers.
She said: "He was woken up about four in the morning by screams from downstairs, got out of bed in his pyjamas obviously unarmed, nothing in his hands and hurrying down the stairs.
She said he was shot "without any warning" as he came down the stairs.
"He wasn't asked to freeze, given any warning and didn't know the people in his house were police officers until after he was shot," she added.
She said Mr Kahar was "lucky still to be alive".
The Independent Police Complaints Commission said it would use its own investigators to "examine the circumstances surrounding the discharge of a police firearm".
It investigated the shooting of Jean Charles de Menezes by police at Stockwell Tube station, the day after the failed 21 July bombings.
Meanwhile, Julian Young, acting for Mr Koyair, 20, said his client "denies any involvement in the commission, preparation, or instigation of terrorist offences".
Speaking after a closed court hearing in central London - at which police were given permission to hold both men until Wednesday - the solicitor said Mr Koyair was due to be interviewed by officers again on Sunday morning.
He added that Mr Kahar was expected to be released from hospital around lunchtime and be taken to Paddington Green high security police station.
Smashed window in house raided by police
One eyewitness said officers smashed a window to gain access
Police were now looking in "every nook and cranny", said BBC home affairs correspondent Daniel Sandford, but there was no obvious and immediate threat, he said.
Some officers wore bio-chemical suits and carried gas masks in the search of the terraced house in Lansdown Road.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, head of the Met's anti-terror branch, said Friday's operation was planned in response to "specific intelligence".
But the operation has angered some locals, prompting a leaflet to be circulated announcing a meeting next week to discuss the raid.
It states: "We cannot comment on this individual case but we know many such raids have been against innocent people."
Officers from MI5 are thought to have been watching a group of British young people of Bangladeshi origin for weeks.
Their e-mails, phone calls and movements were logged and the suspicion was they were planning a terrorist attack in the UK.
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Who shot Abdul Kahar?
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/inayat_bunglawala/2006/06/who_shot_abdul_kahar.html
If mistakes were made during Friday's raid in east London, the police should own up to them now.
Inayat Bunglawala
June 5, 2006 12:35 PM | Printer Friendly Version
"Bomb suspect 'shot by brother'", revealed the mass-market Sunday tabloid the News of The World yesterday on its front page.
While the NoTW put this claim in quotes on its front page to indicate - to the discerning among its readers - that this was a version of events as viewed by a police source, its inside pages were more forthright. A caption below a picture of the 23-year-old Abdul Kahar read as follows: "This is the first picture of the gunned-down poison bomb suspect - shot by his OWN BROTHER"
Notice that there are no quotes this time around the "shot by his own brother", indicating that this was an established fact - according to the NoTW.
Abdul Kahar's solicitor, Kate Roxburgh, on the other hand, has emphatically claimed that her client was shot "without any warning, at close range" by the police as they ascended the stairs of the brothers' home, and has dismissed the NoTW story as "absolute nonsense".
An Independent Police Complaints Commission investigation is under way that will, one hopes, shed light on the matter, but its findings will not be complete for a few months yet.
Meanwhile, the circumstances surrounding the shooting of Abdul Kahar in the shoulder during Friday morning's raid have led to other questions also being asked.
Initial reports in the British media had talked of a chemical bomb factory being located in a house in east London. Sky News had reported at the time that detectives "expect to find a chemical bomb of some kind in the house in Lansdown Road, Forest Gate, east London". It now turns out that the bomb may well have been of the missing kind.
The Met's head of anti-terrorism, Peter Clarke, later said the aim of the operation had been merely to "prove or disprove" intelligence the police had received. But if that was the case, why was it necessary to involve more than 250 officers in the raid?
Admittedly, the police have a difficult line to tread: they have to treat any potential threat to public safety with the utmost seriousness while at the same time taking care not to unnecessarily alienate those whom it protects.
Above all, the police need quality intelligence: it is their lifeblood. If they are seen to act on the basis of what later turns out to be flimsy evidence, it can only hamper their subsequent supply of intelligence, and it then becomes a kind of vicious circle.
It is surely in all our interests that relations do not deteriorate between the police and British Muslims. In east London though, reporters have found that many Muslims, particularly among those born in the UK, are unhappy about the police tactics they saw on display and are beginning to give loud voice to their concerns.
In an eviscerating leader page yesterday, the Mail on Sunday asked whether "shock and awe" really had a place in the anti-terror effort:
We have had tanks uselessly deployed at Heathrow airport, the nonexistent plan to attack Manchester United, the fantasy plot to poison the people of London with ricin - and the shooting dead of a wholly innocent man mistaken for a suicide bomber ... The way in which [Friday's] action was conducted kindles the suspicion that it had a propaganda purpose as well as a security purpose - that it was intended to demonstrate the vigilance and striking power of MI5 and the police just as much as it was aimed at collaring alleged terrorists.
The situation is not irrecoverable. If mistakes were made in the latest operation, it is better for the police to admit to them frankly. There is a lot of goodwill out there.
But after the fatal shooting of the innocent Brazilian Jean Charles de Menezes, any attempt to mislead the public could well have bad consequences for us all.
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Two held in terror raid released
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5066166.stm
General view of the scene of the raid on Lansdown road
An extensive search took place at the home in east London
Two men arrested after a raid on a house in east London have been released without charge, Scotland Yard said.
Police questioned two brothers, one of whom was shot during the raid, on suspicion of terrorism involvement.
Mohammed Abdul Kahar, 23, and Abul Koyair, 20, both denied the allegations. They were held after a major raid in Forest Gate last Friday.
Police are now said to continuing their search for chemical materials elsewhere after finding nothing at their house.
The men, who had been held under the Terrorism Act 2000, were released shortly before 2030 BST on Friday.
They deserve the support of the community in doing what is often a very hazardous and dangerous job
John Reid, Home Secretary
As the men were released, police confirmed officers had completed their search of the raided property in Lansdown Road.
A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "We appreciate the police operation has caused inconvenience and disruption to the occupants of the house.
"We will be contacting the owners to make appropriate arrangements for the property to be handed back to them.
"We will also be undertaking appropriate restoration work in consultation with the owners."
The statement added that intelligence received by police "continues to be developed" and that the Met Police "will continue to exhaust all lines of inquiry".
BBC correspondent Andy Tighe said sources believe the original intelligence was credible and police are continuing their hunt for "some sort of chemical, home-made device".
In a statement issued after the brothers were freed, Home Secretary John Reid said the police are acting in the "best interests of the whole community".
'Specific intelligence'
"They therefore deserve the support of the community in doing what is often a very hazardous and dangerous job that often involves difficult decisions."
Anti-terror police raided the house at Forest Gate last week after saying they received "specific intelligence" that a chemical device might be found there.
Scotland Yard later said they had "no choice" but to act while the prime minister said it was essential officers took action if they received "reasonable" intelligence suggesting a terror attack.
Tony Blair said he backed the police and security services 101% and he refused to be drawn on suggestions that the armed operation had been a failure.
But Muslim leaders had warned police could lose the trust of Forest Gate residents if the situation was not clarified.
Inayat Bunglawala, from the Muslim Council of Britain, said the raid looked to have been a "terrible mistake".
We do hope that the appropriate lessons will be learned by all involved in this tragic incident.
Muslim Council of Britain
"Today's decision to release the two brothers without charge confirms their innocence," he told the BBC.
He said the raid had created quite a bit of unease in the Muslim community - particularly amongst the younger generation.
"We do hope that the appropriate lessons will be learned by all involved in this tragic incident... the release of these two brothers may go some way to undoing the damage caused," he said.
The Islamic Human Rights Commission said the arrests were "another indictment of police and intelligence service anti-terrorist policy".
IHRC chairman Massoud Shadjareh said: "This policy is criminalising and victimising a community that is running out of patience."
Earlier on Friday, around 100 people gathered outside Forest Gate police station to protest about last week's raid. They chanted slogans and waved plaques condemning the police and government.
Protest organisers claimed the raid was symptomatic of oppression of the Islamic community.
Earlier in the day, Humeya Kalam, the sister of the two brothers, also criticised the police action.
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Questions after terror pair freed
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5066846.stm
Workmen arrive at the scene Lansdown road
The east London home was being cleaned following the examination.
Questions are being asked about the way police and intelligence services handled an anti-terror raid in east London after the release of two men.
Two brothers Abul Koyair, 20, and Mohammed Abdul Kahar, 23 who was shot in the raid, were freed without charge on Friday evening.
Both men had denied allegations of involvement in terrorism.
Met Police Authority member Murad Qureshi said mistakes were made, but police have defended the raid.
Officers are continuing their search for chemical materials elsewhere after finding nothing at the house in Lansdown Road, Forest Gate, since the raid on 2 June.
'Learn from mistakes'
The men, who had been held under the Terrorism Act 2000 and questioned on suspicion of terrorism involvement, were released shortly before 2030 BST on Friday.
Through the week outcry at the arrest of the men developed into a protest about the tactics and the way information was leaked out which may have been misleading.
Mr Qureshi, speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, said: "I think that there were a series of mistakes, which I think that the Met should learn from and they cover everything from the collecting of intelligence and how you collaborate that to the nature of the surveillance of suspects, through to how the suspects are actually dealt with."
Of particular concern, he said was "how we find ourselves with one of the brothers shot and quite a lot of the slander, quite honestly, which has been out in the press".
A Scotland Yard spokesman said after the release, that intelligence received by police "continues to be developed" and that the Met Police "will continue to exhaust all lines of inquiry".
They deserve the support of the community in doing what is often a very hazardous and dangerous job
John Reid, Home Secretary
Opinion divided as two freed
Announcing the men's release the spokesman said: "We appreciate the police operation has caused inconvenience and disruption to the occupants of the house.
"We will be contacting the owners to make appropriate arrangements for the property to be handed back to them.
"We will also be undertaking appropriate restoration work in consultation with the owners."
'Family ecstatic'
Assad Rehman, who chairs the Newham monitoring project, welcomed the release of the two brothers, but said questions about the raid remained.
"We're very happy and the family are very very ecstatic that they have been vindicated and of course also the community has been vindicated.
"The concerns and the questions that we have had raised about the nature of the raid, the intelligence behind the raid and obviously the fact that the raid had impacted so negatively ... and once again we've seen none of those questions being answered."
Ex-Met Police Flying Squad Commander John O'Connor said he thought the raid was "very unprofessional".
Mr O'Connor told BBC Breakfast on Saturday: "If you're going to mount an operation like this, you want to have enough evidence to charge people with a criminal conspiracy ... You don't go in on the speculation that you might find the product."
BBC correspondent Andy Tighe said sources believe the original intelligence was credible and police are continuing their hunt for "some sort of chemical, home-made device".
In a statement issued after the brothers were freed, Home Secretary John Reid said police are acting in the "best interests of the whole community".
'Specific intelligence'
"They therefore deserve the support of the community in doing what is often a very hazardous and dangerous job that often involves difficult decisions."
Anti-terror police raided the house at Forest Gate last week after saying they received "specific intelligence" that a chemical device might be found there.
Scotland Yard later said they had "no choice" but to act while the prime minister said it was essential officers took action if they received "reasonable" intelligence suggesting a terror attack.
Tony Blair said he backed the police and security services 101% and he refused to be drawn on suggestions that the armed operation had been a failure.
But Muslim leaders had warned police could lose the trust of Forest Gate residents if the situation was not clarified.
Inayat Bunglawala, from the Muslim Council of Britain, said the raid looked to have been a "terrible mistake".
He said the raid had created quite a bit of unease in the Muslim community - particularly amongst the younger generation.
The Islamic Human Rights Commission said the arrests were "another indictment of police and intelligence service anti-terrorist policy".
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