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| Radical books in London libraries | Radical books in London libraries |
| (about 10 hours later) | |
| Public libraries serving the densest population of Muslims in London have been inundated with extremist literature, according to a report. | Public libraries serving the densest population of Muslims in London have been inundated with extremist literature, according to a report. |
| Multiple copies of books were found in Tower Hamlets that would feature on any jihadist reading list, the report obtained by the BBC said. | Multiple copies of books were found in Tower Hamlets that would feature on any jihadist reading list, the report obtained by the BBC said. |
| Tower Hamlets Council said their Islamic collections had been imbalanced, but they were improving. | Tower Hamlets Council said their Islamic collections had been imbalanced, but they were improving. |
| The report was by right-leaning think tank the Centre for Social Cohesion. | The report was by right-leaning think tank the Centre for Social Cohesion. |
| 'Separatism and bigotry' | 'Separatism and bigotry' |
| Its main author Douglas Murray told BBC2 Newsnight: "This is a collection that is warped towards one particular extreme interpretation of Islam." | Its main author Douglas Murray told BBC2 Newsnight: "This is a collection that is warped towards one particular extreme interpretation of Islam." |
| Most controversially, several books written by two of Britain's most notorious terrorist sympathisers were found in public libraries. | Most controversially, several books written by two of Britain's most notorious terrorist sympathisers were found in public libraries. |
| Douglas Murray says taxpayers' money should not fund extremism | Douglas Murray says taxpayers' money should not fund extremism |
| Two books by Abu Hamza al-Masri, who used to preach at Finsbury Park mosque, are in the collection, as is one book by Sheikh Abdullah al-Faisal, whose lectures inspired two of the London bombers. | |
| Both men have been convicted of incitement to murder, but not on the basis of these writings. | Both men have been convicted of incitement to murder, but not on the basis of these writings. |
| The former Islamist Ed Hussain, who grew up in Tower Hamlets, said: "The shocking thing is that this stuff is available and there are people out there borrowing it. | The former Islamist Ed Hussain, who grew up in Tower Hamlets, said: "The shocking thing is that this stuff is available and there are people out there borrowing it. |
| "The worry is how many of those people - it might be a small number, but small enough to cause carnage - who are then prepared to literally act upon those teachings." | "The worry is how many of those people - it might be a small number, but small enough to cause carnage - who are then prepared to literally act upon those teachings." |
| Mr Murray said: "Taxpayers' money should not be used to fund extremism... after all the library system is meant to educate and inform, not to cause separatism and bigotry." | Mr Murray said: "Taxpayers' money should not be used to fund extremism... after all the library system is meant to educate and inform, not to cause separatism and bigotry." |
| 'Hatred of women' | 'Hatred of women' |
| The Tower Hamlets collections also include multiple works by the founders of modern political Islam, Sayed Qutb and Sayed Abdullah Maududi, and a large number of texts from Saudi scholars, promoting the Wahhabi fundamentalist school of thought. | |
| These, the report says, refer to "incredible hatred of women, incredible hatred of non-Muslims... and of Muslims who are not part of the Wahhabi tradition". | These, the report says, refer to "incredible hatred of women, incredible hatred of non-Muslims... and of Muslims who are not part of the Wahhabi tradition". |
| Tower Hamlets Council operates a number of libraries in East London | Tower Hamlets Council operates a number of libraries in East London |
| The report's authors counted 61 separate copies of Maududi's books including the classic Al Jihad, in which he states: "The objective of Islamic jihad is to eliminate the rule of an un-Islamic system and establish in its stead an Islamic system of state rule... the aim of Islam is to bring about a universal revolution." | The report's authors counted 61 separate copies of Maududi's books including the classic Al Jihad, in which he states: "The objective of Islamic jihad is to eliminate the rule of an un-Islamic system and establish in its stead an Islamic system of state rule... the aim of Islam is to bring about a universal revolution." |
| There were also 11 copies of Sayed Qutb's Milestones, which is highly sought after by jihadists. | There were also 11 copies of Sayed Qutb's Milestones, which is highly sought after by jihadists. |
| There were 20 copies of books by the founder of Wahhabism, Muhammad ibn Abdul Wahhab, and 16 copies of a book by modern day Saudi scholar Muhammad Jamil Zino. | |
| Zino's book What a Muslim Should Believe offers advice in the form of hypothetical questions. | Zino's book What a Muslim Should Believe offers advice in the form of hypothetical questions. |
| "Is it allowed to support and love disbelievers?" he asks. The answer is simply "no". | "Is it allowed to support and love disbelievers?" he asks. The answer is simply "no". |
| In a statement to Newsnight, a Tower Hamlets Council spokeswoman said: "The Islamic book stock came from a narrow range of publishers, thereby not reflecting the broad range of Islamic thought. | In a statement to Newsnight, a Tower Hamlets Council spokeswoman said: "The Islamic book stock came from a narrow range of publishers, thereby not reflecting the broad range of Islamic thought. |
| "We recognised we needed to improve the balance of the Islamic literature in our libraries, which has resulted in us buying extra books more widely representative of Islam." | "We recognised we needed to improve the balance of the Islamic literature in our libraries, which has resulted in us buying extra books more widely representative of Islam." |
| The council said it would not remove the books by Abu Hamza and al-Faisal because the writings themselves remain legal in Britain. | |
| The Centre for Social Cohesion was set up by think tank Civitas. | The Centre for Social Cohesion was set up by think tank Civitas. |