Suicide bomber wife cleared

Cleared: Widow Tahira Tabassum

The widow of a British suicide bomber has been cleared of terrorist offences - but his brother and sister are to be retried.

Tahira Tabassum was found not guilty of failing to alert authorities to a terrorist act in an Israeli bar in 2003 by her husband Omar Sharif.

But Old Bailey jurors failed to agree verdicts against his brother and sister, Zahid and Parveen Sharif.

Parveen denies a further charge of inciting a terrorist act.

The widow, brother and sister of Omar Sharif, all of Derby, had all denied failing to disclose information about terrorism.

Israel attack

In April 2003 Omar Sharif, 27, targeted Mike's Place, a bar in Tel Aviv, Israel, with fellow British bomber Asif Hanif, 21, after the pair had joined militant Palestinian organisation Hamas.

Retrial: Parveen and Zahid Sharif

Two men and a woman were killed and more than 50 injured when Hanif blew himself up.

Sharif's explosives failed to detonate and he fled the scene. His body was found 12 days later in the sea.

The family was charged with failing to report information which could have prevented an act of terrorism after police officers interviewed them as part of investigations into Sharif's preparations for the attack.

Sharif had sent his wife an e-mail saying: "We did not spend a long time together in this world but I hope through Allah's mercy... we can spend eternity together."

Ms Tabassum told the court she had no idea what he was planning and she thought the email meant Sharif was leaving her.

Last week, after a two-month trial, the jury acquitted Ms Tabassum, 28, of Derby.

But they told the judge they had not agreed on a verdict for the remaining defendants after nearly 24 hours of deliberations.

The Recorder of London, Judge Michael Hyam, gave the Crown Prosecution Service a week to decide whether they would be seeking a retrial, meaning the verdict acquitting Ms Tabassum could not be reported until now.

Her solicitor, Louise Christian, said: "I am obviously delighted for her after this extremely long ordeal but I do feel this prosecution should never have been brought in the first place."

The retrial of Parveen Sharif, 36, of Breedon Hill Road, and Zahid Sharif, 37, of Upper Dale Road, both Derby, is expected in November.