'Disgraceful' Islamist protesters plan to target more soldiers returning from Iraq
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Members of the local community in Luton claim that the protesters were members of al-Muhajiroun itself, a virulently anti-Semitic organisation which claimed to have been disbanded in 2004. Its founders replaced it with two spin-off groups, both of which were then subsequently made illegal by the Government for glorifying terrorism.
The Home Office said today that anyone found to be guilty of belonging to a banned organisation would be prosecuted, and that it was constantly reviewing whether to ban further groups emerging throughout the UK.
The group of demonstrators - who held up placards in Luton town centre with slogans including: "Anglian Soldiers: Butchers of Basra", "Anglian Soldiers: cowards, killers, extremists" and "British Government Terrorist Government" and hurled verbal abuse at passing soldiers - were described by the local MP as having brought "disgrace" to Luton
Yet in a statement posted on its website, Islam for the UK said further protests in a similar vein were needed, labelled the British troops as "terrorists" and compared them to the Nazis. Islam for the UK is run by Anjem Choudhury, the radical preacher who was right hand man to Omar Bakri Mohammed, former al-Muhajiroun leader.
The statement also mocked UK troops as "cowards who cannot fight, as their uncanny knack for death by ‘friendly fire' illustrates".
"A sincere demonstration was organised by Muslims from the local community to highlight the (British) state sponsored terrorism that is currently ensuing in the lands of Afghanistan and Iraq, and how the return of active soldiers on such battlefronts should be marked with severe condemnation as opposed to welcoming rapture," the statement said.
"They are terrorists and cannot be excused for simply 'carrying out their duty', which incidentally (and vividly) was also used by Nazi soldiers in Germany to justify their notorious and bloody campaigns in the early 20th century.
"To the Muslim Ummah (community) we say that this must be our policy to those who aggress and violate the rights of our brothers and sisters anywhere in the world.
"We must condemn them and rally against them however we can, and indeed that is the best response."
Despite the threat of further protests, the Anglians' latest march, which took place through Watford town centre today, passed off without incident as 200 troops paraded past crowds of more than 3,000 during a 40-minute ceremony.
The regiment was given the freedom of the town by Dorothy Thornhill, its mayor. A further march - the regiment's final homecoming parade following its six-month Iraq tour - is planned for Lincoln tomorrow.
Margaret Moran, the Luton South MP, led a chorus of condemnation after yesterday's demonstrations, telling BBC Radio 4's Today programme that she was surprised police had authorised the protest which caused clashes involving those who had come out to welcome the troops. “I am absolutely disgusted with the demonstration by a small number of extremists linked to al-Muhajiroun. It is not representative of Luton," she said.
Abdul Malik, a member of Luton’s Race Advisory Forum, also said that the protesters were likely to have been members of the banned group, but argued that such demonstrations - however "insensitive" - should be allowed in a democracy. "In a democratic system, however they are unacceptable, we must welcome their viewpoint and listen to it and give it attention," he said.
Speaking during the weekly Prime Minister's Questions session in the House of Commons, Gordon Brown said homecoming parades should be “a celebration”: He added: “There is a right to freedom of speech but there is not a right to disruption."
Britain's most senior officer in Basra, meanwhile, said that he found them "upsetting", bearing in mind what troops had achieved in Iraq. Major General Andy Salmon said: "It's ... a total misrepresentation of the reality of what’s being done, and the gravity of what’s been achieved."
In response to claims that the protesters were members of an underground al-Muhajiroun group - or spin-offs created to avoid any government ban - the Home Office said it was carefully monitoring any proscribed organisations which reappeared, or took alternative names.
“Proscription is a tough but necessary power to tackle terrorism. Decisions on proscription must be proportionate and based on evidence that a group is concerned in terrorism as defined in the Terrorism Act 2000," a spokeswoman said.
“Organisations which cause us concern, including those which might change their name to avoid the consequences of proscription, are kept under constant review. As and when new material comes to light it is considered and the organisation re-assessed as part of that process.”