Twin brothers jailed for raising money for terrorism

Twin brothers who admitted raising money in England to fund terrorism abroad have been jailed for three years.
Father of three Mohammed Shabir Ali and Transport for London employee Mohammed Shafiq Ali were part of a "network of support" for their brother while he was undergoing terrorist training in Somalia, the Old Bailey heard.

The 25-year-old identical twins from Tower Hamlets, east London, were recorded speaking on the phone to their brother, Mohammed Shamim Ali, about collecting the money from members of the public by pretending it was for charity, said Timothy Cray, prosecuting.

Sentencing the two men on Wednesday, Mr Justice Fulford said he recognised that their primary concern was providing financial help to their 29-year-old brother.
But he added that this support was for someone involved in "terrorist activities in war-torn countries of Africa".

The judge told the court, where the men's wives watched from the public gallery, that he accepted that if their brother had not travelled to Somalia, they would not have committed any offence.

He said: "They are not suggested to have held anything like the most extreme leanings or views. They nonetheless did have a degree of what I am going to describe as relevant ideological interest at the time of this offence."

He said that in passing his sentence he took into account that the men were of previous good character and had shown a "strong element of responsibility" by giving evidence at a murder trial earlier this year. Their evidence had been a "significant" factor in the conviction of four men, he added.

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