First Female Jailed For Terrorist Offences

Possession of information that would be of use to terrorists has put a woman behind bars.

The 23-year-old is the first woman in Great Britian to be convicted under anti-terror legislation.

The Heathrow Airport worker Samina Malik, 23, burst into tears as an Old Bailey jury found her guilty of possessing records likely to be used for terrorism by a majority of 10 to one.

Known as the "Lyrical Terrorist" because she wrote poems entitled How To Behead and The Living Martyrs, Malik was prosecuted because she was found to have stocked up a "library" of documents useful to terrorist.

The jury was told that Malik, who worked airside at WH Smith, was an unlikely but committed Islamic extremist.

She once wrote on the back of a receipt from the shop: "The desire within me increases every day to go for martyrdom."

She was convicted of possessing records likely to be useful in terrorism under the Terrorism Act 2000 after earlier being cleared by a jury of a separate count of possessing an article for terrorism.

Jonathan Sharp, prosecuting, said Malik liked to be known as the "Lyrical Terrorist" or "a stranger awaiting martyrdom".

He told the court: "She is a committed Islamic extremist, who supports terrorism and terrorists. She had a library of material that she had collected for terrorist purposes. That collection would be extremely useful for someone planning terrorist activity.

"She was an unlikely person to be an active supporter of terrorism."

The court heard how Malik visited a website linked to jailed cleric Abu Hamza and stored material about weapons at her family home in Southall, west London.

She told the jury she used the nickname "Lyrical Terrorist" because she thought it was "cool", but she insisted: "I am not a terrorist."

(BMcC)