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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
|---|---|
| Terror director Briton given life | Terror director Briton given life |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| A British man who became the first al-Qaeda suspect convicted in the UK of directing terrorism has been sentenced to life in jail. | A British man who became the first al-Qaeda suspect convicted in the UK of directing terrorism has been sentenced to life in jail. |
| Rangzieb Ahmed, 33, was found guilty of the offence on Thursday following a trial at Manchester Crown Court. | Rangzieb Ahmed, 33, was found guilty of the offence on Thursday following a trial at Manchester Crown Court. |
| The judge described him as an "extremely dangerous man". | The judge described him as an "extremely dangerous man". |
| Ahmed was also found guilty of being a member of terror group al-Qaeda, along with Habib Ahmed, who was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. | Ahmed was also found guilty of being a member of terror group al-Qaeda, along with Habib Ahmed, who was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. |
| Habib, 29, was given nine years for being a member of the terror group and an additional year for possessing a document for terror-related purposes. | |
| You [Rangzieb] are an intelligent, capable and superficially reasonable man who is involved in terrorism Mr Justice Saunders Briton guilty of directing terrorBriton 'linked to core al-Qaeda' | |
| The taxi driver had been caught with two diaries containing details of top al-Qaeda operatives, described in court as a terrorist's contact book. | The taxi driver had been caught with two diaries containing details of top al-Qaeda operatives, described in court as a terrorist's contact book. |
| Among the names and phone numbers in the diaries, which contained some writing in invisible ink, was a former al-Qaeda top man Hamza Rabia, the court was told. | |
| Both men, who are not related, are from Manchester. | Both men, who are not related, are from Manchester. |
| Recruiter and organiser | Recruiter and organiser |
| The prosecution said Rochdale-born Rangzieb had been part of a three-man active service cell on an unknown foreign mission. | |
| Handing him a life sentence, Mr Justice Saunders said: "The prosecution case accepted by the jury was you were not one of the leaders but a recruiter and organiser of smaller terrorist cells throughout the world to work for al-Qaeda. | Handing him a life sentence, Mr Justice Saunders said: "The prosecution case accepted by the jury was you were not one of the leaders but a recruiter and organiser of smaller terrorist cells throughout the world to work for al-Qaeda. |
| "I am satisfied you are dedicated to the cause of Islamic terrorism. You are an intelligent, capable and superficially reasonable man who is involved in terrorism. | "I am satisfied you are dedicated to the cause of Islamic terrorism. You are an intelligent, capable and superficially reasonable man who is involved in terrorism. |
| "That makes you an extremely dangerous man." | "That makes you an extremely dangerous man." |
| He said he must serve a minimum of 10 years but would not be released until he was considered not to be a threat to the public. | He said he must serve a minimum of 10 years but would not be released until he was considered not to be a threat to the public. |
| Terror assistant | |
| Rangzieb had travelled to Dubai from Pakistan via China en route to South Africa in December 2005 as part of a "major activity," the court heard. | |
| It was said this was abandoned when his boss, Hamza Rabia, was killed in an explosion the same month. | |
| Without them [the diaries] Rangzieb Ahmed would not have been able to carry on organising terrorism Mr Justice Saunders | |
| Mr Justice Saunders told Habib he had "assisted" Rangzieb, whom he knew to be an "active terrorist working for al-Qaeda". | |
| "You joined up with him," he said. "You assisted him by travelling to Dubai when he was on a terrorist mission and you brought the notebooks into this country. | |
| "Those notebooks were extremely important. They may not have contained the details of how to make bombs but they were in my view just as important to al-Qaeda." | |
| "Without them Rangzieb Ahmed would not have been able to carry on organising terrorism." | |
| A member of the public gallery shouted, "Jannah (paradise) is yours" as Habib was led to the cells, while another said, "He is innocent". | |
| The two men were trapped by a complex police and security force operation, and Rangzieb was eventually arrested in Pakistan in August 2006. |