- 18 Oct 2003 14:18
#34635
Top cleric 'stopped' terror plot
By Cameron Stewart and Colleen Egan
October 18, 2003
Australia's leading radical Islamic cleric has revealed he was told of a planned terrorist attack in Australia only months before the Sydney Olympic Games.
Sheik Mohammed Omran, the Melbourne-based leader of the fundamentalist Ahl Sunnah wal Jama'ah Association, claims he advised against a plot to bomb targets in Australia in 2000 and threatened to go to the police.
And a separate source has supported Sheik Omran's extraordinary revelation, saying a letter sent to Indonesian terrorist figure Abu Bakar Bashir prominently quoted the Melbourne cleric's view that bombings should not be carried out on Australian soil.
In a series of exclusive interviews with The Weekend Australian, Sheik Omran said he was approached in 2000 by identical twins Abdul Rahman Ayub and Abdul Rahim Ayub, whom authorities now believe ran the Australian arm of the terrorist group responsible for the Bali bombing, Jemaah Islamiah.
According to the sheik, the twins told him a Muslim man, whom The Weekend Australian will call Hussein, was planning to carry out terror attacks. The twins had not hatched the plot but sought guidance from the sheik in his capacity as an Islamic elder statesman as to how they should respond to Hussein's plan.
"They approached me and said 'this man wants to make some attacks on things ... and what do you want to do about it?'," Sheik Omran told The Weekend Australian.
"I said 'go back, and if he doesn't stop thinking about it and talking about it, I am going to stop him'. My threat was real and he stopped - that's the end of the story."
The Weekend Australian has been told by a well-placed source that a letter citing Sheik Omran's views was sent to Bashir, the JI spiritual leader, to help stop the Hussein mission. The source, who saw the letter before it was sent to Southeast Asia in the first half of 2000, said Bashir received it and read its contents.
Sheik Omran claims he later told authorities of the Hussein plan. However, the former head of intelligence for the Sydney Olympics, Neil Fergus, denies receiving information about any specific bomb plot against foreign targets before the September 2000 games.
Sheik Omran is the nation's most influential fundamentalist Islamic cleric, preaching a pure and conservative form of Islam from prayer centres across the country.
His teachings are closely followed by fundamentalist Muslims and are carefully monitored by ASIO.
Sheik Omran says he does not support terrorism and claims he is a force for peace within Australia's fundamentalist Muslim community.
But he admits to knowing many people who have been jailed for terrorist activities around the world. These include his long-time friend Abu Qutadar, the suspected head of al-Qa'ida in Europe, who is under arrest in Britain, and Bashir, , who is serving a jail sentence in Indonesia.
Sheik Omran was recently named in Spanish court documents as having links with the suspected leader of al-Qa'ida in Spain, Abu Dahdah - claims which the sheik has denied.
Sheik Omran has also revealed that shortly before the Olympics, he was also told by another sheik that Hussein was planning a second bombing.
The 49-year-old Jordanian-born Sheik Omran has spent almost 20 years teaching his conservative brand of Islam in Australia, gaining a reputation of the "wisest of the wise" among fundamentalists who go to him for advice on issues affecting their community.
In interviews with The Weekend Australian, Sheik Omran's followers said they would go to him ahead of ASIO if they suspected one of their group was planning a terrorist act.
"The sheik enjoys prominence and influence over the most fundamentalist part of the Muslim community," Mr Fergus said. "This means he can be a powerful force for good, but it means that he can also cause harm."
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/co ... 01,00.html
By Cameron Stewart and Colleen Egan
October 18, 2003
Australia's leading radical Islamic cleric has revealed he was told of a planned terrorist attack in Australia only months before the Sydney Olympic Games.
Sheik Mohammed Omran, the Melbourne-based leader of the fundamentalist Ahl Sunnah wal Jama'ah Association, claims he advised against a plot to bomb targets in Australia in 2000 and threatened to go to the police.
And a separate source has supported Sheik Omran's extraordinary revelation, saying a letter sent to Indonesian terrorist figure Abu Bakar Bashir prominently quoted the Melbourne cleric's view that bombings should not be carried out on Australian soil.
In a series of exclusive interviews with The Weekend Australian, Sheik Omran said he was approached in 2000 by identical twins Abdul Rahman Ayub and Abdul Rahim Ayub, whom authorities now believe ran the Australian arm of the terrorist group responsible for the Bali bombing, Jemaah Islamiah.
According to the sheik, the twins told him a Muslim man, whom The Weekend Australian will call Hussein, was planning to carry out terror attacks. The twins had not hatched the plot but sought guidance from the sheik in his capacity as an Islamic elder statesman as to how they should respond to Hussein's plan.
"They approached me and said 'this man wants to make some attacks on things ... and what do you want to do about it?'," Sheik Omran told The Weekend Australian.
"I said 'go back, and if he doesn't stop thinking about it and talking about it, I am going to stop him'. My threat was real and he stopped - that's the end of the story."
The Weekend Australian has been told by a well-placed source that a letter citing Sheik Omran's views was sent to Bashir, the JI spiritual leader, to help stop the Hussein mission. The source, who saw the letter before it was sent to Southeast Asia in the first half of 2000, said Bashir received it and read its contents.
Sheik Omran claims he later told authorities of the Hussein plan. However, the former head of intelligence for the Sydney Olympics, Neil Fergus, denies receiving information about any specific bomb plot against foreign targets before the September 2000 games.
Sheik Omran is the nation's most influential fundamentalist Islamic cleric, preaching a pure and conservative form of Islam from prayer centres across the country.
His teachings are closely followed by fundamentalist Muslims and are carefully monitored by ASIO.
Sheik Omran says he does not support terrorism and claims he is a force for peace within Australia's fundamentalist Muslim community.
But he admits to knowing many people who have been jailed for terrorist activities around the world. These include his long-time friend Abu Qutadar, the suspected head of al-Qa'ida in Europe, who is under arrest in Britain, and Bashir, , who is serving a jail sentence in Indonesia.
Sheik Omran was recently named in Spanish court documents as having links with the suspected leader of al-Qa'ida in Spain, Abu Dahdah - claims which the sheik has denied.
Sheik Omran has also revealed that shortly before the Olympics, he was also told by another sheik that Hussein was planning a second bombing.
The 49-year-old Jordanian-born Sheik Omran has spent almost 20 years teaching his conservative brand of Islam in Australia, gaining a reputation of the "wisest of the wise" among fundamentalists who go to him for advice on issues affecting their community.
In interviews with The Weekend Australian, Sheik Omran's followers said they would go to him ahead of ASIO if they suspected one of their group was planning a terrorist act.
"The sheik enjoys prominence and influence over the most fundamentalist part of the Muslim community," Mr Fergus said. "This means he can be a powerful force for good, but it means that he can also cause harm."
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/co ... 01,00.html
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