Anjem Choudary

Anjem Choudary (born 18 January 1967), also known as Abu Luqman, is a British Islamist who has been described as "the face" of militant Islamism or the "best known" Islamic extremist in Britain. He was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2024 after being found guilty of directing a terror organisation. Two years later he was convicted under the Terrorism Act 2000 of inviting support for a proscribed organisation, namely the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. He was subsequently subject to sanctions by both the U.S. State Department and the U.N. Security Council freezing his assets. He has been heavily criticised in the UK media.

In 1996, Choudary, with Omar Bakri Muhammad, helped form the Islamist al-Muhajiroun organisation in Britain. The group organised several anti-Western demonstrations, including a banned protest march in London for which Choudary was summoned to appear in court. The UK government banned Al-Muhajiroun in 2010 and Choudary subsequently founded or helped found a series of organizations considered by many to be Al-Muhajiroun under new names—such as Al Guraba', Islam4UK, Sharia4UK, Sharia4Belgium. the conversion of famous British landmarks (Buckingham Palace, Nelson's Column) into palaces for a caliph, minarets, and mosques; praise for those responsible for the 11 September 2001 and 7 July 2005 attacks; calling for the execution of the Pope for criticizing the Islamic prophet Muhammad; and declaring that Muslims reject the concepts of freedom of expression, democracy, and human rights. He was released automatically on licence in October 2018 with restrictions on speaking in public or to the media. On 18 July 2021, his ban on speaking in public was lifted after his licence ended, and as of October 2021 he had reportedly resumed his online campaigns. Following a further prosecution, he was found guilty in July 2024 of directing a terror organisation (Al-Muhajiroun), after an investigation involving police and intelligence forces in the UK, USA and Canada. On 30 July 2024, he was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 28 years.

Early life

Anjem Choudary was born in Bexley in South East London on 18 January 1967. The son of market trader, his parents were Punjabi Muslims who migrated to what became Pakistan from East Punjab during the Partition of India in 1947. He attended Mulgrave Primary School, in Woolwich.

In 1996, Choudary married Rubana Akhtar (or Akhgar), who had recently joined al-Muhajiroun, which he led at the time. She later became the group's head of women. The couple have four children. While attending university, he was reputed to have indulged in drink and drugs. Responding to claims that he was a "party animal" who joined his friends in "getting stoned", in 2014 Choudary commented "I admit that I wasn't always practising... I committed many mistakes in my life."

He switched to law at the University of Southampton and spent his final year as a legal student (1990–1991) at Guildford, before moving to London to teach ESL. He found work at a legal firm and completed his legal qualifications to become a lawyer. In the early 1990s, he worked in his spare time as an organizer for preacher/scholar Omar Bakri Muhammad, who also supported the reestablishment of the Sunni caliphate.

Jihadist military training in Britain

On 7 November 1999, The Sunday Telegraph reported that Muslims were receiving weapons training at secret locations in Britain. Most of those who trained at these centres would then fight for Osama bin Laden's International Islamic Front in Chechnya, while others would fight in such places as Kosovo, Sudan, Somalia, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Kashmir. The report identified Anjem Choudary as a key figure in recruiting for these training centres.

Organisations

Choudary's first organization, Al-Muhajiroun, was established in Britain in 1996 and banned in 2010.

Choudary was present at the launch of its intended successor, Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah, and after that he helped form Al Ghurabaa, which was banned in July 2006. Choudary then became the spokesman for Islam4UK until it was proscribed While some sources refer to the Al Guraba', Islam4UK, etc., as successors of Al-Muhajiroun, others describe them as "other names the organisation [Al-Muhajiroun] goes by" to circumvent the ban on the original group. The two men had met at a local mosque, where Bakri was giving a tafsir. In 2002, following a bazaar organised by al-Muhajiroun, Choudary gave a talk on education in Slough. His lecture outlined his ideas for a parallel system of Islamic education in the UK and included elements of the group's ideology. In the same year, although they were refused a permit by the then Mayor of London Ken Livingstone, on 25 August the group held a rally in London. Choudary was summonsed to Bow Street Magistrates' Court in January 2003, on charges which included "exhibiting a notice, advertisement or any other written or pictorial matter", "using apparatus for the amplification of sound", "making a public speech or address" and "organising an assembly".

In 2003 or 2004, he organised an Islamic-themed camping trip, at which Bakri lectured, on the grounds of the Jameah Islamiyah School in East Sussex. Advertised by word-of-mouth, the trip was attended by 50 Muslim men, most of whom were members of al-Muhajiroun. Bakri later claimed the camp's activities included lectures on Islam, football and paintballing. In September 2006, following allegations that it was used in the training and recruitment of terrorists, police searched the school. According to testimony from Al Qaeda suspects held at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, in 1997 and 1998, Abu Hamza and groups of around 30 of his followers held training camps at the school, which included training with AK47 rifles and handguns, and a mock rocket launcher. No arrests were made, and students and faculty were allowed to return on 23 September 2006, the first day of Ramadan.

The UK government had investigated expelling Bakri even before the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, and in July 2003 the headquarters of al-Muhajiroun, and the homes of Bakri and Choudary, were raided by the police. The following year, under new anti-terrorist legislation, the government announced that it wanted to ban al-Muhajiroun. In 2005, Bakri learned that he was at risk of prosecution for his support of the 7 July 2005 London bombers, and in August left the UK for Lebanon, where he claimed that he was on holiday. After leaving a television station where he said "I will not return to Britain unless I want to go there as a visitor or as a tourist", he was detained by Lebanon's general security department and held in a Beirut prison. Several days later, Bakri was excluded from returning to Britain by the Home Secretary, Charles Clarke, on the grounds that his presence in Britain was "not conducive to the public good." Choudary condemned the decision and demanded to know what Bakri had done to justify the ban. He claimed that ministers were inventing rules to ensure that Bakri could not return. In November, Choudary and three other followers of Bakri were deported from Lebanon and returned to the UK. Choudary blamed the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for orchestrating their deportations, claiming that the four were there to help Bakri set up a madrasah.

Following his deportation, Choudary attended the launch in London of Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah, the intended successor organisation to al-Muhajiroun. Choudary said that Bakri was not on the committee of the new group, but that "we would love for the sheikh to have a role." The organisation operates mainly through an invitation-only internet forum, to which Choudary contributes under the screen name Abu Luqman.

Al-Muhajiroun attempted a relaunch in June 2009 at Conway Hall, in Holborn. Several speakers were invited to share a platform with Choudary, but some later claimed that they had been invited under false pretences. When the group refused to allow women into the meeting, the chairman of the society that runs the hall cancelled the event. He was heckled by many of those in the audience. Choudary took the microphone from the chairman and led chants of "Sharia for UK", saying in reference to the exclusion of women: "Jews and Christians will never make peace with you until you either become like them or adopt their ways." Outside the hall, Choudary criticised British society, predicting that Muslims would make up the majority within one or two decades. When asked why, if society were so bad, he lived here, he replied: "We come here to civilise people, get them to come out of the darkness and injustice into the beauty of Islam."

Al Ghurabaa

Choudary was also a spokesman for Al Ghurabaa, believed to have been an offshoot of al-Muhajiroun. It was proscribed in 2006 by the then Home Secretary John Reid. Choudary was outraged: "The easy option when one is losing an argument is to ban the opposition voice. ... We [al-Ghurabaa] are not a military organisation; we have only been vociferous in our views—views concerning everything from the government's foreign policy in Iraq and Afghanistan to the host of draconian laws, which they've introduced against us in this country."

Islam4UK

In November 2008, Choudary organised a meeting of the then recently formed Islam4UK, which, according to its website, was "established by sincere Muslims as a platform to propagate the supreme Islamic ideology within the United Kingdom as a divine alternative to man-made law", and to "convince the British public about the superiority of Islam ... thereby changing public opinion in favour of Islam in order to transfer the authority and power ... to the Muslims in order to implement the Sharee'ah (here in Britain)".

According to Ed Husain, co-founder of the counter-terrorism think-tank the Quilliam Foundation, Islam4UK was a "splinter group of al-Muhajiroun and Hizb ut-Tahrir, the originators of extremism in Britain." Islam4UK was "previously known as al-Muhajiroun, al-Ghurabaa and Muslims Against Crusades", according to the Dutch intelligence agency AIVD.

With the announcement by Islam4UK that it planned to hold a protest march through Wootton Bassett (known for the military funeral repatriations of dead British soldiers returning from the war in Afghanistan), Choudary said "You may see one or two coffins being returned to the UK every other day, but when you think about the people of Afghanistan its a huge number [being killed] in comparison ... I intend to write a letter to the parents of British soldiers telling them the reality of what they died for." Choudary's open letter was published on 3 January 2010. It explained his reasons for proposing the march, endorsed his religious beliefs, and claimed that UK politicians had been lying about the war. Choudary wrote that the proposed march was to "engage the British public's minds on the real reasons why their soldiers are returning home in body bags and the real cost of the war." The proposal was condemned by the British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, who said that to offend the families of dead or wounded troops would be "completely inappropriate". The Minhaj-ul-Quran International UK centre in Forest Gate also condemned the proposal, as did the Muslim Council of Britain, which stated that it "condemns the call by the fringe extremist group Islam4UK for their proposed march in Wootton Bassett." The planned march was cancelled by the group on 10 January 2010.

From 14 January 2010, Islam4UK was proscribed under the Terrorism Act 2000, making membership illegal and punishable by imprisonment. Choudary condemned the order. In an interview on BBC Radio he said "we are now being targeted as an extremist or terrorist organisation and even banned for merely expressing that" and "I feel this is a failure of the concept of democracy and freedom." Following his arrest and subsequent release in September 2014 on suspicion of encouraging terrorism, Choudary claimed he was questioned about his membership of or support for proscribed groups including Islam4UK and Need4Khalifah, both of which the government believes are successors to al-Muhajiroun.

Activism

Choudary has regularly attended public marches and, following a protest march outside the Danish Embassy in London on 3 February 2006, held in response to the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy. As a member of a panel of interviewees on the BBC news programme Newsnight he claimed that the police had inspected and allowed the controversial placards used in the demonstration. Choudary was criticised by his fellow panellists, who included Ann Cryer (then MP for Keighley), Humera Khan (al-Nisa Muslim Women's Group, who accused him of demonising Islam), Sayeeda Warsi (vice-chair of the Conservative Party), Professor Tariq Ramadan (who claimed that Choudary's actions were designed to evoke a strong response from the media), and Roger Knapman (leader of the UK Independence Party).

On 15 March 2006, he was among five men arrested in connection with the demonstration, which had been organised by al Ghurabaa. He was arrested again on 4 May at Stansted Airport for an alleged breach of bail, and charged with organising the protest without notifying police. He was bailed to appear before Bow Street Magistrates' Court on 11 May. On 4 July 2006 he was convicted and fined £500 with £300 court costs.

The following day, at an Al Ghurabaa press conference at the Al Badr centre in Leyton, Choudary claimed that the blame for the London bombings lay with the British government, and said that the then Prime Minister, Tony Blair, had "blood on his hands". He also urged Muslims to defend themselves against perceived attacks by "whatever means they have at their disposal", and referred to the 2 June 2006 Forest Gate raid in which Mohammed Abdul Kahar was shot in the shoulder. He encouraged Muslims not to cooperate with the police under any circumstances. Local council leader Clyde Loakes criticised Choudary's comments, stating "I am sure the vast majority of Waltham Forest residents do not support these views."

In September 2006, Pope Benedict XVI gave a speech on the question of the "reasonableness" of the Christian faith, to the University of Regensburg in Germany. In the Regensburg lecture he spoke about rationality in faith, and cited comments by the fourteenth-century Byzantine emperor Manuel II Palaiologos, who, as the Pope put it, said "show me just what Mohamed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." The citation attracted severe criticism from Muslims around the world, including the parliament of Pakistan, which condemned the Pope for his comments and sought an apology from him. Following the speech, on 17 September Choudary led a protest outside Westminster Cathedral, where he told reporters "Whoever insults the message of Mohammed is going to be subject to capital punishment." The Metropolitan Police investigated his comments, but concluded that "no substantive offences" were committed during the demonstration. The Shadow Home Secretary, David Davis, who had called for action to be taken against Choudary, said: "It is quite disgraceful. It sends out a message to Muslim extremists that we, as a country, do not have the moral courage to stand up to them." However, unnamed sources claim that UK law enforcement had, on multiple occasions, sufficient evidence to make an arrest. They were prevented from doing so as he was allegedly being monitored by British Security Services.

He attempted to enter France to demonstrate against the French government's decision to ban the burka, but was stopped at the port of Calais. His passport was seized and he was issued documents banning him from France indefinitely.

On 13 December 2013, Choudary led a march in Brick Lane, organised by the east London-based Sharia Project, demanding a ban on alcohol being sold by Muslim establishments. An East London Mosque official, speaking of the patrols, identified The Shariah Project as "strongly linked" to Anjem Choudary's banned group Al-Muhajiroun. Abu Rumaysah of The Shariah Project had predicted "hundreds" would join the demonstration, claiming that groups of Muslims would come from as far away as the Midlands to take part. In the event, only a few dozen protesters took part in the march.

Choudary afterwards explained its purpose: "What we did is we posted a notice to the shop owners saying that under Sharia and under the Koran the sale of alcohol is prohibited and if one were to also drink alcohol, that would be 40 lashes. We were there to teach them that just because they are living among non-Muslims is no excuse because Sharia law will be implemented in Britain, and so they should be aware that just because it is not Sharia today, they can't just do whatever they like." He said the Shariah Project group would be arranging many more such rallies. Since Choudary had called for the establishment of an Islamic state for many years in his lectures, "he came under intense sustained pressure from his acolytes", to declare his support for the new state. In a private social media message, one supporter, Abu Rumaysah al-Britani, demanded, "We have to declare our position – enough stalling!" The trial was postponed to 27 June 2016, and was expected to last no more than four weeks. Choudary was convicted on 28 July 2016. At the Old Bailey on 6 September 2016, Mr Justice Holroyde sentenced Choudary to five years and six months in prison, telling him that he had "crossed the line between the legitimate expression of your own views and a criminal act".

Post-release and later conviction for directing a terrorist organisation

Choudary was released from prison on 19 October 2018. Shortly after his release, it was reported that Choudary would be placed in a probation hostel in London Borough of Camden for six months where he would be required to abide by a number of conditions, such as ban from preaching at or attending certain mosques, he would only be allowed to associate with people who have been approved by the authorities, he would be allowed one phone and was banned from using an internet-enabled device without permission, use of the internet was to be supervised, he was restricted from travel outside Greater London's M25 and he was to not be able to leave the UK without permission. The investigation was multi-national and had involved the Metropolitan Police's counter-terrorism unit, MI5, the New York Police Department and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. On 23 July, Choudary was charged with membership of a proscribed organisation and directing and encouraging support for a proscribed organisation, all contrary to section 56 of the Terrorism Act 2000. Hussein was charged with membership of a proscribed organisation. On 23 July 2024, he was found guilty of "directing an organisation concerned with the commission of acts of terrorism" and is the first person in the UK to be convicted of this charge. At Woolwich Crown Court on 30 July 2024, Mr Justice Wall sentenced Choudary to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 28 years. His appeal against conviction and sentence was dismissed in March 2026.

Views

Choudary referred to the hijackers in the 11 September attacks as "magnificent martyrs". In 2003, he said that al-Muhajiroun would "encourage people to fulfil their Islamic duties and responsibilities", although he also said that the group was a political movement and not responsible for individual actions. In 2004, he said that a terror attack on British soil was "a matter of time". He refused to condemn the 7 July 2005 London bombings, but accused the Muslim Council of Britain (who had) of "selling their souls to the devil". He blamed the 2013 murder of Lee Rigby, an off-duty British soldier, on British foreign policy.

Choudary has voiced support for the Muslim community in Somalia, who, he claims, have been "violated" by Christian-backed Ethiopians, and has also called for other members to fight jihad.

The Wall Street Journal describes Choudary as a supporter of "the fundamentalist strain of Islamic teaching known as Salafism". He believes in the primacy of Islam over all other faiths, and the implementation of Sharia law, in its entirety, in the UK. In 2001, he stated that his allegiance is to Islam, and not a country. He believes that, for a true Muslim, "a British passport is no more than a travel document."

In October 2006, Choudary addressed an audience at Trinity College, Dublin to oppose the motion that "This house believes that Islamist violence can never be justified". In February 2008 the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, commented that "as a matter of fact certain provisions of sharia are already recognised in our society and under our law". Choudary responded by saying that Sharia "has to be adopted wholesale", and that "it will come either by embracing Islam because it is the fastest growing religion in the country, or by an Islamic country conquering Britain or by elements embracing Islam and imposing it."

In 2008, Choudary spoke of the "flag of Sharia" flying over Downing Street by 2020,