ISIS Terrorist Found with 'Suicide Bomb Manual' Faces Prison in UK
A 24-year-old man who entered the UK illegally as a teenager and was granted indefinite leave to remain has been convicted of terror offenses, including membership in ISIS and possessing materials useful for committing terrorism.
An individual convicted of terror offenses in the United Kingdom faces imprisonment after being found with a manual on creating explosive belts and disseminating terrorist propaganda, including videos glorifying the 9/11 attacks. Abdullah Yousef, 24, was found guilty by a jury at Birmingham Crown Court of membership in a proscribed organization and possessing information likely to be useful to a person preparing an act of terrorism.
Yousef created a Telegram group where he shared terrorist material, including instructions for making suicide vests and glorifying the September 11, 2001 attacks. He also professed support for and membership of ISIS, a proscribed terrorist organization, and stated, "By the way, I am a terrorist."
He arrived in the UK at approximately 15 years old, claiming to be from Syria, although prosecutors suggest he may be from Egypt based on his dialect. Yousef was granted indefinite leave to remain in the UK. His conviction includes six charges of disseminating terrorist publications.
Anti-terror police discovered the material on a mobile phone seized from his home address in Milton Keynes. Frederick Hookway, prosecuting, told the court that evidence primarily came from this device. A review of messages revealed a pledge of allegiance to ISIS and subsequent disseminations of publications supporting the group. A document titled 'homemade explosive belts' was also recovered from his phone.
Detective Chief Superintendent Oliver Wright, Head of Counter Terrorism Policing South East, stated that Yousef's actions of making terrorist material available to others could encourage vulnerable individuals towards extremism and motivate them to engage in terrorist activity. The public is encouraged to report individuals expressing extreme views or hatred through www.gov.uk/act or the Anti-Terrorism Hotline on 0800 789 321.
Yousef will be sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court at a later date.