Hate preacher jailed for telling children to join IS

Kamran Sabir Hussain delivered his lecturers in front of an IS flag, to a congregation that included children as young as three.
Stoke imam Kamran Hussain. Pic: Duncan Gardham

An imam has been jailed for six and a half years after telling children that martyrdom was better than school, in a series of sermons encouraging his congregation to join Islamic State.

Kamran Sabir Hussain, 40, from Stoke-on-Trent, delivered his lecturers from a lectern in front of a black IS flag, to a congregation that included children as young as three.

The content of the speeches was recorded by an undercover officer, who was sent into the mosque to document the imam's sermons, in the first such case to come before the courts.
Hussain stirred up his congregation by telling them that the right-wing English Defence League and Britain First were funded by the Government to attack Muslims.
"The kuffar (unbeliever) will attack you and kill you," he told them.
"Stand up and be ready to sacrifice, be ready to stand in the face of the elements of Shaytan (Satan), be ready to spill blood and have your blood spilt."
Hussain ran the Faizal Ellahi mosque, which was registered as a charity, behind a former shop front on the High Street in Tunstall, Stoke-on-Trent.
He lived in a flat close to the mosque, where police found an upstairs fitness room with an "inspirational" poster on the wall showing an assault rifle and a hunting knife.
Hussain took over the mosque when the previous imam retired, delivering the Friday sermon and offering advice to married couples and families.
A picture illustration of an Islamic State flag
The undercover officer used the name "Qassim" and began attending the mosque in June 2016, recording sermons given by Hussain over a period of four months.
In March 2016, the imam posted a message on social media in which he said that the "Khilafah" - a reference to IS - was "knocking on your door and the fulfilment of Allah's command is near and if you don't like it and are enraged by it, then our message to you is simple: 'Die in your rage.'"
On 24 June, nine days after the start of Ramadan, Hussain delivered a 23-minute sermon in front of around 10 people, in which he spoke of a "small fledgling state who is standing in the face of a pompous and arrogant army" - said to be a reference to IS - and asked his audience to pray for them to be victorious and for their oppressors to be annihilated.
In a 30-minute sermon on 22 July, Hussain asked his congregation to pray that they might all live under sharia law and to stand firm against sinners, adding: "Finish them and remove their heads for what they do, when you don't fulfil the command of Allah, I'm coming to remove your head."
He took the "mujahideen" (holy warriors) as his topic on 5 August, telling the congregation that they "take over a land, they stand a black flag, and establish the law of Allah over the necks of the people, whether they like it or don't like it," and "nobody, not the Queen, not the Prime Minister, can say that you are not allowed to establish the law of Allah."
In front of a congregation of 10 to 15 children under the age of 15, and about 25 adults, Hussain told them on 19 August last year that the British government funded groups like the EDL and Britain First to insult Muslims, attack them and put them down.
On 2 September last year, Hussain told nine children - two of them under five - and 35 adults that martyrdom was the "supreme success" and greater than any other success such as school or college.Hussain was sentenced following a trial at the Old Bailey in central London
He said: "They tell you in your schools, they tell you in your colleges, in your work places, you need to have ambition, you need to progress, you need to move forward.
"If indeed you are adventurous, you are ambitious, you're ready to take on the challenge, then Allah gives you the actions you need to take - the ones who died fighting for the sake of Allah.
"Allah's saying they are the ones who have supreme success, those who fought in the cause of Allah."
Those who died fighting for Allah had nothing to fear when "you go in front of Allah with the bullet wounds and the sword wounds and you are raised in that situation with the blood still coming from your body."
Hussain finished the sermon with a prayer that the "thorn placed by the martyrs in the neck of the unbelievers may be deepened."
Hussain was found guilty after an earlier trial of two charges of encouraging support for IS and six charges of encouraging others to commit acts of terrorism.
When he was arrested on 14 February this year, he refused to answer questions but gave police a written statement saying the ability to discuss "difficult concepts in a challenging world" was an essential part of the exercise of religion and freedom of speech.
In court he claimed he was only trying to "emulate the Prophet" with his "urgent" delivery and was surprised to hear the tone of his sermons.
Detective Chief Superintendent Matt Ward of West Midlands Counter Terrorism Unit said: "Hussain was espousing hatred and violence as well as clearly demonstrating his support for Daesh through the content in his sermons.
"During this investigation we used covert methods to record these sermons and present it as evidence during the trial.
"We will continue to use every lawful technique and power available to us to tackle terrorism."
Mari Reid, from the Crown Prosecution Service,said: "Kamran Hussain was in a position of trust and authority which he abused by encouraging support for Daesh and glorifying violent extremism.
"His audience included children who would have heard him say killing others or being killed themselves was more desirable than doing well in school."