ianstone
08-22-2010, 05:10 PM
Muslim who justified killing British troops back at Treasury
Azad Ali, a Muslim civil servant suspended after comments appeared on his personal website justifying the killing of British troops in Iraq, has returned to work at the Treasury.
By Duncan Gardham, Security Correspondent
Ali, an IT worker and president of the Civil Service Islamic Society, was suspended on full pay for six months following comments on his blog.
In one post Mr Ali said he found 'much truth' in an interview with an Islamic militant who said: "If I saw an American or British man wearing a soldier's uniform inside Iraq I would kill him because that is my obligation.
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"If I found the same soldier in Jordan I wouldn't touch him. In Iraq he is a fighter and an occupier, here he is not. I respect this as the main instruction in my religion for jihad."
He also criticised the British Government for failing to condemn the "Zionist terrorist state of Israel" during the Gaza crisis and David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, for condemning Hamas leader Mahmoud Zahar after he said Jewish children were "legitimate targets".
Mr Ali also mocked the official representatives of moderate British "Muslims" who support the Government, calling them "self-serving vultures, feeding on the dead flesh of the Palestinians".
The Civil Service Islamic Society's official website declares that it is bound by strict rules which say Whitehall special interest groups must be "non-partisan and non-political" and act with "honesty, impartiality and integrity".
But the comments came on his personal blog, which highlighted his civil service role and provided a link to the Whitehall website.
Sir Gus O'Donnell, Britain's most senior civil servant and patron of the Civil Service Islamic Society, ordered that Mr Ali be suspended while an investigation was carried out amid concerns that Mr Ali may have breached the Whitehall code of practice that restricts civil servants from political activities.
The investigation has now finished and Mr Ali has returned to his job.
A Treasury spokesman said: "Azad Ali is back at work. The Treasury has dealt with the matter in accordance with our disciplinary procedures. We will not comment on individual cases."
Mr Ali refused to comment.
Azad Ali, a Muslim civil servant suspended after comments appeared on his personal website justifying the killing of British troops in Iraq, has returned to work at the Treasury.
By Duncan Gardham, Security Correspondent
Ali, an IT worker and president of the Civil Service Islamic Society, was suspended on full pay for six months following comments on his blog.
In one post Mr Ali said he found 'much truth' in an interview with an Islamic militant who said: "If I saw an American or British man wearing a soldier's uniform inside Iraq I would kill him because that is my obligation.
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Pirates 'smuggling al-Qaeda fighters' into Somalia (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/piracy/5743328/Pirates-smuggling-al-Qaeda-fighters-into-Somalia.html)
Can Barack Obama's soothing rhetoric douse the Muslim militants' flames? (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/concoughlin/5446662/Can-Barack-Obamas-soothing-rhetoric-douse-the-Muslim-militants-flames.html)
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"If I found the same soldier in Jordan I wouldn't touch him. In Iraq he is a fighter and an occupier, here he is not. I respect this as the main instruction in my religion for jihad."
He also criticised the British Government for failing to condemn the "Zionist terrorist state of Israel" during the Gaza crisis and David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, for condemning Hamas leader Mahmoud Zahar after he said Jewish children were "legitimate targets".
Mr Ali also mocked the official representatives of moderate British "Muslims" who support the Government, calling them "self-serving vultures, feeding on the dead flesh of the Palestinians".
The Civil Service Islamic Society's official website declares that it is bound by strict rules which say Whitehall special interest groups must be "non-partisan and non-political" and act with "honesty, impartiality and integrity".
But the comments came on his personal blog, which highlighted his civil service role and provided a link to the Whitehall website.
Sir Gus O'Donnell, Britain's most senior civil servant and patron of the Civil Service Islamic Society, ordered that Mr Ali be suspended while an investigation was carried out amid concerns that Mr Ali may have breached the Whitehall code of practice that restricts civil servants from political activities.
The investigation has now finished and Mr Ali has returned to his job.
A Treasury spokesman said: "Azad Ali is back at work. The Treasury has dealt with the matter in accordance with our disciplinary procedures. We will not comment on individual cases."
Mr Ali refused to comment.