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April 23, 2007

Australia: Islamists Paid Converts For Prison Break-Out

News from Sydney Morning Herald, IBN News, News.com.au and the New Zealand Herald:

Bassam Hamzy is a Muslim convicted murderer, aged 28. In 1998 he shot dead an 18-year old outside an Oxford Street Sydney nightclub and was given a 21 year jail sentence. He is an open supporter of Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda. Until very recently he was incarcerated in Goulburn jail in New South Wales, held with 36 other inmates inside its Super Max high security facility.

It appears that Hamzy paid 12 of these inmates to convert to Islam, where they became known as the "Super Max Jihadists". The money which Hamzy used came from an outside network, based in Bankstown, Sydney. The arrangement has been going on for 18 months, and the group has regular discussions in Arabic and English, talking about martyrdom.

The plan had been for these converts to break out of the prison. The planing came to light when the authorities noticed money passing into the prisoners' accounts via outside contacts. The gang believed the outside gang could help them escape. Regular payments of $100 AUS passed into the men's accounts, allowing them to buy luxuries such as radios, cigarettes, etc.

Now, Bassam Hamzy has been moved to Lithgow jail, where he is being kept in isolation. It is not the first time that he has been involved in transactions of money. In November 2002, a triple killer in the Super Max facility, Michael Kanaan, had been caught transferring sums of $100 AUS to Hamzy and another inmate, Vester Fernando. AT that time, the opposition corrective services spokesman Michael Richardson had said: "Kanaan isn't doing this out of the goodness of his heart. He's recruiting a gang of murderous enforcers to use as his lieutenants. He was the leader of a vicious, violent gang when he was on the streets and now he is rebuilding his gang inside jail."

In the current case, the Sun Herald reported that Hamzy had pictures of Osama bin Laden on his cell walls, and other prisoners had been seen on surveillance tapes kneeling and kissing his hands.

John Hatzistergos, the New South Wales attorney-general, said many prisoners took up religion inside: "(But) we don't tolerate it if it's really a camouflage for other activities. It's important when we're dealing with the worst of the worst offenders that we're not hoodwinked into thinking they've had some sort of cathartic experience because they've taken up religion."

Corrective Services Commissioner Ron Woodham said: "We have known for quite some time there has been conversion not only in super max but in other correctional facilities. It seemed innocent enough... we later realised they were more organised than we realised."

He told Southern Cross Radio: "The officers are using a term down there now at Goulburn jail - 'pay to pray'. These people have never had any contact or interest in religion before and all of a sudden they're converting to Islam. Hamzy is the powerbroker or the organiser, as if he's forming a gang."

Inside the Super Max facility, a rift has opened up between the 12 Islamic converts and the other 24. An anti-Islamic faction, led by contract killer Lindsay Rose, is trying to re-convert the Muslims.

Ivan Milat, the notorious "backpacker killer" is housed in the Super Max facility, but has not become one of Hamzy's converts.

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Sydney Morning Herald reports that Australian Federal Police (AFP) have launched an inquiry into a group of Somali Islamists based in Melbourne, Victoria. These are suspected of gathering funds to send to extremists in Mogadishu, Somalia. This fundraising is thought to have started last summer. after Islamists took control of the capital, Mogadishu, on June 5. There are 16,000 Somali immigrants in Australia.

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The infamous self-styled "Mufti" of Australia, Taj al-Din al-Hilali, has been attracting ridicule from fellow Muslims, states News.com.au. Hilaly is under suspicion of mis-using funds which were raisied by the Muslim community to send to civilian victims of the Lebanon/Israel conflict which took place last summer. $70,000 AUS was raised, but it has been alleged that $11,900 AUS ($10,000 US) of this money had gone to an individual who supported the Iraq insurgency and is a Hezbollah operative.

Hilaly has decided to launch his own inquiry into the unaccounted-for funds. Khalil Shami, a Sydney cleric, said that Hilaly's own inquiry would carry no credibility. Jamal Rifi, another Muslim leader said: "It's an issue of accountability and transparency."

The Australian newspaper revealed this month that Hilaly's handwritten notes show that the $10,000 had been paid to Sheik Bilal Shaaban, who has links to the Iranian-funded terrorist group Hezbollah. AFP are still mounting their own investigation into the donations.

Shabaan has written in the Arabic newspaper Asharq Alawsat praising Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Shabaan was a secretary-general of the Sunni Harakat al-Tawhid al-Islami, (Islamic Unity Movement) in Lebanon. In November last year, Shabaan acted as Hilaly's chauffeur, driving him around three villages in war-damaged southern Lebanon. He denied claims that Hilaly gave him the money to repair damage to his Islamist radio stations, two of which were hit during the conflict.

Keyword: Hilali

Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at April 23, 2007 3:13 PM

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