Man convicted of terror offences

The judge said Siddique was guilty of significant offences

A man has been found guilty at the High Court in Glasgow of three terrorism offences.

Mohammed Atif Siddique, 21, from Alva, in Clackmannanshire, will be sentenced next month.

Jury members were told the young Muslim was a "wannabe suicide bomber" who had been apprehended by police targeting extreme Islamists.

Siddique, who sat motionless in court, had denied possessing and collecting terror-related items and information.

Judge Lord Carloway called for a risk assessment report on Siddique and said he would be sentenced when he next appears before him in Edinburgh on 23 October.

A jury took almost nine hours to reach a verdict at the end of a four-week trial.

Siddique, who was a student, was found guilty of possessing suspicious terrorism-related items including CDs and videos of weapons use, guerrilla tactics and bomb-making.

He was also found guilty of collecting terrorist-related information, setting up websites showing how to make and use weapons and explosives, and circulating inflammatory terrorist publications.

You have been convicted of significant contraventions of the terrorism acts Judge Lord Carloway

A further charge of breach of the peace related to claims that he showed students at Glasgow Metropolitan College images of suicide bombers and terrorist beheadings.

Lord Carloway told Siddique, whose parents run a general store in the small town of Alva: "You have been convicted of significant contraventions of the terrorism acts.

"In particular having in your possession articles connected with the commission, preparation or instigation of an act of terrorism."

Members of Siddique's family listened as his lawyer Aamer Anwar told reporters outside the court how he was guilty only of doing what millions of young people do every day - "looking for answers on the internet".

He said: "This verdict is a tragedy for justice and freedom of speech and undermines the values that separates us from the terrorists.

Siddique's father Mohammed (left) and Aamer Anwar outside court

"Atif Siddique states that he is not a terrorist and is innocent of the charges and it is not a crime to be a young Muslim angry at global injustice.

"In the end Atif Siddique did not receive a fair trial and we will be considering an appeal."

Assistant Chief Constable Maureen Brown, of Central Scotland Police, said the conviction concluded one of the most challenging investigations ever conducted by the force.

She said: "Mohammed Atif Siddique has been convicted of serious terrorism offences and I wish to make absolutely clear at the outset that this investigation has only ever been about one thing - criminality.

"It was not about communities or a particular faith.

"What this case has demonstrated is that we will not tolerate terrorism in any form."

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said: "The successful conviction of the individual today in Glasgow is a reminder that the threat we face from terrorism is real and not isolated to any particular region."

During the three-and-a-half week trial, prosecutor Brian McConnachie told the court that Siddique had been at the centre of top-level surveillance by police and security services.

Strip weapons

A computer disc found hidden under a carpet in the accused's family home contained images including Islamic extremists looting the body of a dead US serviceman.

Siddique's laptop had an al-Qaeda recruiting video urging young Muslim men to become suicide bombers.

He also set up a website that had links on how to be a home-grown terrorist, including bomb making advice and how to strip weapons.

The accused, who did not give evidence, claimed that the material he collected was for research.

His QC, Donald Findlay, argued that such material could easily be obtained by anyone on the internet.

Osama Saeed, Scottish spokesman for the Muslim Association of Britain said it was important to point out that the trial did not uncover an active plot to cause death and destruction in Scotland.