Aussie Police had found “jihadist” materials in Dr Haneef’s flat after arrest
Sydney, Oct 23: The Australian Federal Police (AFP) have revealed that a search of Dr Mohamed Haneef''s apartment shortly after he was arrested from Sydney last year had found some “jihadist” materials, including a brochure from a proscribed terror organisation and an inflammatory lecture by an al-Qa''ida-linked preacher.
The revelations are contained in the Federal Police''s submission to the Clarke inquiry, which was published on the Internet today, reported news. com. au.
The AFP also revealed that investigators had found a brochure from an organisation the AFP said was "prescribed in a number of countries".
The brochure contained a reference to “the brutal invasion and occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq, the killing and murder of our brothers and sisters and the brutality of British and American foreign policy”.
On Dr Haneef''s laptop the AFP found audio files of lectures delivered by an author “linked to al-Qa''ida”. “In one of the lectures the author expresses a militant view of jihad, explaining that fighting jihad in the path of Allah is the primary meaning of the word if it is used unqualified,” he added.
On the other hand, Dr Haneef’s legal team also made the point that these materials were never raised with Dr Haneef, and, hence, he was never given a chance to explain them. One of his lawyers, Rod Hodgson, said he had "absolutely no faith" in the AFP''s interpretation of the materials.
The AFP’s submission fleshed out its reasons for suspecting Dr Haneef of involvement in the botched UK terror attacks.
It focuses on Dr Haneef''s rapid departure from Australia. The AFP is evidently sceptical of Dr Haneef''s stated reasons - that he was returning to India to visit his newborn daughter who had been readmitted to hospital in India just days earlier.
The AFP say Dr Haneef appears to have made no mention of his travel plans prior to his leaving.
They say his decision to travel on a one-way ticket - despite saying he was coming back in a week – “defied economic sense”. Dr Haneef, who had been working at the Gold Coast Hospital, was arrested on July 2 last year after police linked his phone SIM card to bungled terror attacks in London and Glasgow.
The case collapsed for lack of evidence and is now the subject of a government-ordered inquiry headed by retired NSW Supreme Court judge John Clarke QC.
The AFP dumped the decision to charge Dr Haneef squarely at the doorstep of the commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions, who provided verbal and written advice that a charge was sustainable. (ANI)