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October 23, 2005
UK: Minister Accused Of "Misleading" In Ban On Uzbek Islamic Group
According to today's Sunday Times, the Home Office minister, Hazel Blears (pictured), has come under intense criticism for allegedly misleading parliament by presenting "false" intelligence about the threat from an Islamic group which was included in Charles Clarke's list of proscribed terrorist groups.
She said to MPs earlier this month that the Uzbek group, the Islamic Jihad Union was a threat to British interests overseas. The group has a stated aim of bringing about democracy to the dictatorship of Uzbekistan. On May 13 this year, about 700 people were massacred by the Uzbek security forces in Andijan, the state capital, after mass protests by local Muslims
To make her case against the IJU, Blears told MPs that information on the group had been received directly from British intelligence sources which showed it to have been responsible for a series of bombings in Uzbekistan in March 2004.He claims that he made several warnings to her at the time of potential bombings to be carried out by the group, but later came to the conclusion that the reports given to him were concocted by the Uzbek government.Her account was accepted at the time by MPs but has now been challenged by Craig Murray, who was British ambassador in Uzbekistan until 2004.
"I sent a telegram to London - copied to the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC) in MI5, to the Foreign Office and the Ministry of Defence - about the inconsistencies of the accounts. JTAC agreed with my assessment that the official version of events was not credible. I am amazed to find it being repeated in the House of Commons by Hazel Blears." Murray said.Craig Murray, ambassador to Uzbekistan between 2002 and 2004, has written an account of his criticisms of Ms Blears' policy in the Guardian from October 19. He described how he had been taken, while Uzbek ambassador to a scene of a "suicide attack":
The physical evidence on the ground did not coincide with the official explanation. For example, each suicide bomber was alleged to be using explosives equivalent to 2kg of TNT. But nowhere, not even at the site of an alleged car bomb, was there a crater, or even a crack in a paving stone. In one small triangular courtyard area a bomb had allegedly killed six policemen. But windows on all sides, at between 10 and 30 metres from the alleged blast, were not damaged; nor was a tree in the middle of the yard. The body of one of the alleged suicide bombers was unmarked, save for a small burn about the size of a walnut on her stomach.
The events of the Andijan massacre are given in an account by the BBC. 23 local businessmen had been imprisoned, accused of Islamic extremism. Protests were taking place peacefully (pictured) on Thursday May 12. In the evening, the situation became volatile when some demonstrators were arrested. In the early hours of riday 13, the jail where the 23 men were imprisoned was attacked , and the detainees were freed. A small number of people had been killed. The following day, several thousand people arrived in Andijan's main square, and the massacre began.
The government of Uzbekistan, led by President Karimov, is still attempting to fabricate versions of what happened in the May massacre. A prominent human rights activist was arrested earlier this month, preventing her from departing to an international conference in Dublin, according to Human Rights Watch . Mukhtabar Tojibaeva was detained on October 7. She is head of the "Fiery Hearts" club, a human rights group based in the Fergana Valley, and a vocal critic of the events of May 13.
The Uzbek authorities have charged Tojibaeva with extortion in what appears to be a politically motivated effort to stop her human rights work and prevent her from attending the conference. The charges stem from a dispute Tojibaeva had with an employee of a fish farm she owns. According to Tojibaeva, the employee had previously confirmed in writing that he owed her 1 million sum (approximately US$1,000). He had already repaid her 350,000 sum. Before her trip, Tojibaeva asked the employee to repay the amount still owed. On October 7, he came to Tojibaeva's house and repaid her 250,000 sum. The police then burst in, accusing Tojibaeva of extortion.The group which is said to be a terrorist organisation, The Islamic Jihad Union, is listed by the UN and the US as a terrorist organisation. The United States State Department listed it as a "Specially Designated Global Terrorist Group, and the UN followed this with their own designation. The group has not claimed responsibility for any terrorist attacks since 2004, according to MITP Terrorist Knowledge Base.
The IJG was previously unknown until April 2004 when the group claimed responsibility for a series of suicide bombings around Tashkent and Bukhara, which killed 47 people. The attacks targeted local government offices, as well as a crowded market. Although IJG released a statement claiming responsibility for the bombings, officials doubted the existence of the unknown group, and blamed other extremist organizations.On July 30, 2004 bomb attacks were made simultaneously upon the Israeli Embassy, the US Embassy and the Uzbek Prosecutor General. Two were killed, and several wounded.
The United States advises travellers to the region to exercise caution.
In 2003, the U.S. Embassy received information indicating that terrorist groups had planned attacks against hotels in Uzbekistan frequented by Westerners, as well as against other institutions affiliated with or representing foreign interests.According to the Sunday Times today, a spokeswoman for the Home Office has said Charles Clarke, the Home Secretary had been provided with detailed intelligence information about Islamic Jihad Union.Terrorist groups do not distinguish between official and civilian targets. As security is increased at official U.S. facilities, terrorists and their sympathizers seek softer targets. These may include facilities where Americans and other foreigners congregate or visit, such as residential areas, clubs, restaurants, places of worship, schools, hotels, outdoor recreation events, and resorts.
"IJU is a proscribed organisation by the United Nations and there was a clear case for the government to follow suit," she said. Blears had presented accurate information to parliament and was drawing on the "full intelligence picture".
Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at October 23, 2005 9:48 AM
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