A LEADING imam in the mosque where the July 7 bombers worshipped has hailed their terrorist attack on London as a “good” act in a secretly taped conversation with an undercover reporter.

Hamid Ali, spiritual leader of the mosque in West Yorkshire, said it had forced people to take notice when peaceful meetings and conferences had no impact.

He also praised the bombers as the “children” of Abdullah al-Faisal, a firebrand Muslim cleric, who was convicted of inciting murder and racial hatred in 2003.

Ali revealed that the leader of the London suicide bombers had attended sermons in Yorkshire by al-Faisal and tapes of al-Faisal’s teachings were still circulating within his mosque.

Al-Faisal, who has branded non-Muslims as “cockroaches” ripe for extermination, is serving a seven-year prison sentence but is eligible for early release next week.

Evidence of continuing extremism and terrorist sympathisers in the bombers’ community has been exposed by a six-week investigation by The Sunday Times. It contrasts with the public statements of condemnation by community leaders — including Ali — in the immediate aftermath of the July 7 attacks...

HAMAS IS *NOT* A TERRORIST GROUP. That's the opinion of Hamza Pelletier, Public Affairs Coordinator for the Boston Chapter of the Muslim American Society. I interviewed him today on my radio show, and he was adamant that we should treat Hamas like any other legitimate government. The only difference between Hamas and Israel, he claimed, was that Israel has F-16s. Of course, if Hamas had F-16s, there would be no more Israel. But Mr. Pelletier was having none of that.

MAS Boston presents itself as a "moderate" organization, by the way. It's hard to believe their Public Affairs chief would be out defending Hamas if he didn't have the backing of the MAS Boston leadership. It seems to me almost newsworthy that the spokesperson for a "moderate" Islamic group--in the city where the 9/11 attacks originated--is a supporter of Hamas.

Unfortunately, we don't have a newspaper in Boston. We have the Boston Globe.