LONDON, 18 July 2007 — British Judge Gerald Gordon, presiding over a terror trial at the Old Bailey in London, yesterday sentenced Yassin Nassari, 28, from Ealing, in West London, to three-and-a-half years after being convicted by a jury last week of possessing documents and data likely to be useful to a terrorist.

Nassari was arrested in May 2006 at Luton Airport after blueprints for a rocket missile were found in his luggage.

His wife Bouchra El Hor, 24, a Dutch national, was found not guilty of failing to disclose information about her husband which could have prevented an act of terrorism.

Judge Gerald Gordon in his sentencing statement stressed: “I have come to the conclusion that, sadly, like a number of young Muslims, you have somehow been indoctrinated into beliefs supporting terrorism by others. I have no doubt you wanted to immerse yourself in this fundamentalist trash, but in the material available to me there is nothing to indicate that any actual terrorist use would have been made of it by anyone.”

Nassari, a self-styled teacher, businessman and student of Arabic, however, was acquitted on the more serious charge of possessing articles for terrorist purposes.

Judge Gordon said Nassari had been described as a “Jack the lad” and there was no evidence to show the material he had on his computer would be used for terror purposes. But, he added, it was an offence to possess the material and “the sooner that is understood the better.”

At college, Nassari wore western clothes and enjoyed a drink, but suddenly underwent a transformation wearing long robes and referring to himself as the emir of the student Islamic society.

The couple and their five-month-old baby were stopped when they were returning to the UK from trips to Holland and Syria.

Police later raided Nassari’s home in Ealing in West London, where they impounded a computer and other documents. The hard drive of the computer contained plans for building a missile similar to those used in Iraq, Lebanon and Palestine.

The Crown Prosecutor alleged that a letter from Bouchra El Hor to Nassari appeared to be encouraging him to become a terrorist.

“I am so proud of my husband. I am happy that Allah has granted you the chance to be a martyr...Maybe one day I can follow you. If I can’t, I will send our son to you so he can follow his father’s footsteps. The moment has come that you and I have to separate for the sake of Allah,” she allegedly wrote.

But Mrs El-Hor explained that the letter was a work of fiction and she knew nothing about what her husband was up to.

The Crown prosecutor alleged that London-born Nassari was preparing to go abroad to fight non-Muslim soldiers in Iraq or Afghanistan in order to become a terrorist martyr.

The court heard that Nassari’s computer hard drive was found to contain plans for building a missile similar to those used by Hamas in Palestine and and Hizbollah in the Lebanon. But the defendant denied knowledge of the material saying he had lent his computer to another man.

Meanwhile, UK Home Office Minister Tony McNulty yesterday commandeered London’s 1,500 congestion zone charges cameras to help in the fight against terrorism. Scotland Yard will have instant access to number plate data which would allow them to target suspect vehicles as they enter or leave the congestion zone and take immediate action. Currently, Scotland Yard has to apply to Transport for London, which is responsible for the congestion zone cameras, for access to the information on those cameras.

Under the new system, announced by Minister McNulty in the House of Commons yesterday, detectives will be given automatic access to the congestion zone cameras’ database. However, these new police powers will only apply to cases involving suspected terrorists or national security. Transport for London has been exempted from the relevant provisions of the Data Protection Act which allows it to hand over the information to the police.

“With the level of operations and the level of danger we are facing we need to have all our resources available to combat the threat. This will be a very useful investigate tool,” stressed a Metropolitan Police Force statement. Endit

Please acknowledge receipt.