There will be a demonstration outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London between 2pm and 4pm today during the last day of the appeal hearing for Munir Farooqi, who was controversially convicted of terrorism offences in 2011.
Farooqi, 56, was sentenced to 18 years in jail after an undercover police operation. He was convicted of trying to recruit people to go on jihad in Afghanistan to fight British soldiers.
The case was particularly controversial because it involved two undercover police officers who pretended to convert to Islam and who secretly recorded conversations with Farooqi and others over a period of about a year.
No weapons or plans were ever found and Farooqi was convicted on his words alone. His family claim those words were taken out of context and were said after constant provocation. They maintain that Farooqi is completely innocent.
Family home
Meanwhile, the local authorities in Manchester are also trying to confiscate the Farooqi family home – which is shelter to three generations of the family – because they say that it was used for the purposes of terrorism. Human rights groups say this is collective punishment. The hearing for the house will be heard or dismissed depending on the outcome of the Munir Farooqi appeal.
Fellow defendants Israr Malik and Matthew Newton ( who were convicted in the same case) are also having their appeal heard.
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