Three jailed over terror funding

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Three men who helped fund a Libyan terrorist group from their homes in the UK have been jailed for a total of nearly eight years.

Ismail Kamoka, 41, from London, and Abdul Bourouag, 44, of Birmingham and Khaled Abusalama, 36, from Smethwick, pleaded guilty at Kingston Crown Court.

They provided more than £20,000 a year and false passports to the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG).

All three were arrested in Worcestershire on 5 December 2005.

Kamoka was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison while Bourouag and Abusalama received 22 months each.

Photographs of hostages

The men claimed that they did not know their money and documents were being used to support extremism and instead thought the funds were going to "humanitarian" causes.

But police found numerous references to terrorist activity at their homes, including photographs of hostages being beheaded.

Treasury counsel Nicholas Hilliard said: "It's plain from the material that the objectives of these men were not humanitarian at all, but were focused on an extremist ideology."

The aim of LIFG is to overthrow Libya's leader Colonel Muammar Muhammad al-Gaddafi , by force if necessary, and replace him with a fundamentalist Islamic ruler.

Mr Justice Mackay recommended the men be deported at the end of their sentences.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, head of the Metropolitan Police counter terrorism command, said: "We do not distinguish between terrorism at home and terrorism abroad."