Imam who supported an al-Qaeda terrorist is given the green light to open a nursery by Ofsted
Dailymail – An imam who expressed support for an al-Qaeda terror attacker has been given the green light to open a nursery by the education regulator.Imam Muhammad Asim Hussain urged followers at the Al-Hikam mosque in Bradford to attend an event in 2015 in support of Aafia Siddiqui, who is serving an 86-year prison term in the US for attempting to kill soldiers in a machine gun attack.In a recorded video, Mr Hussain said the event would highlight the ‘injustice and most importantly the oppression that has been given and meted out to our sister Dr Aafia Siddiqui who is currently in imprisonment’.
Siddiqui hit the headlines last month when Malik Faisal Akram, 44, from Blackburn, demanded her release after taking four people hostage at a synagogue in Texas. He was shot dead by police after his captives escaped.Mr Hussain left his role at the mosque in 2019 following claims of misconduct but was re-appointed last year.Another founder of the Al-Hikam mosque, Muhammad Adil Shahzad, last year used the racially derogatory term ‘coconuts’ to describe 18 Muslim MPs who backed a Yorkshire teacher who had been suspended for showing a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad to pupils.
Mr Shahzad also called for the teacher to be sacked and said he and his followers were ‘fighting an academic war’ against the enemies of Islam.Despite the controversies, Ofsted gave the go-ahead for the nursery plans last month.Celebrating the news on social media, Mr Hussain, a trustee at the mosque which is a registered charity, said Ofsted’s agreement represented a ‘huge milestone’ and posted pictures of the nursery.However, the regulator said it would re-examine the case after The Mail on Sunday brought the imams’ previous comments to its attention.
David Ibsen, executive director at the Counter Extremism Project, said: ‘Al-Hikam should not be permitted to educate young British citizens in its nursery when there is a track record of espousing objectionable and oppressive beliefs.’An Ofsted spokeswoman said: ‘We have been alerted to these concerns and are looking into them.’While we are unable to share information about individual providers, we take safeguarding concerns very seriously and consider all the information we receive.’Mr Hussain said: ‘The observations and comments which have been made previously have been made with the intention of alerting the Islamic Community to the injustices which are taking place around them.’The funeral of Akram took place in Blackburn on Friday after his body was flown back from the US.Around 50 friends and relatives paid their last respects before his family released a statement apologising for his actions and speaking out against hatred.
