Akshardham attack accused arrested
Rajiv Pathak
Sunday, May 30, 2004 (Ahmedabad)
With British authorities arresting Egyptian-born Islamic cleric Abu Hamza, who is believed to have financed the attack on the Akshardham temple in September 2002, the Gujarat police is now hopeful of solving the case.
“Basically his role was to finance the attack. He financed the locals here,” said D G Vanazara, a DCP in the crime branch of Gujarat Police.
Hamza is a hardcore Islamic fundamentalist, according to documentary film-maker Mousuki Acharya.
Acharya, who filmed Hamza as part of her study project in London, says Hamza not only believes in violence but also inspires young Muslims to take to militancy.
Hamza is also reported to have taken part in the Afghan war along with Osama bin Laden.
Under interrogation
“If you look at him, his one eye is damaged. He does not have one hand. His views are very radical and he even fought the Russians in Afghanistan. He was thrown out of Saudi Arabia for his radical views,” says Mousuki Acharya.
After being thrown out of Saudi Arabia for spreading radical Islam, Hamza took asylum in Britain.
But with his links with the Islamic fundamentalists coming to the fore, authorities in Britain are now reportedly interrogating Hamza for his role in terrorist attacks across the world, including the one at Akshardham in Gujarat.
Islamic Terrorism in India 