A High Court judge provoked public outrage after he wished Haroon Aswat, the convicted terrorist linked to the 7/7 London bombings, “all the best” ahead of his release.
Sir Robert Jay made the remarks during a hearing at London’s Royal Courts of Justice, telling Aswat: “I have to wish you all the best… keep on your medication, listen to the advice you are going to get, and keep out of the sort of things you were doing, because you saw where it ended up and you do not want to go back to that, I am sure.”
Aswat, 50, is due to leave Bethlem Royal Hospital in South London and return to live with his family in Batley, West Yorkshire.
An al-Qaeda operative, Aswat admitted involvement in the 2005 London attacks that killed 52 people and has also claimed a role in the 9/11 attacks. In 2015, he pleaded guilty to terrorism offences and was sentenced to 20 years, later reduced to seven years to account for time already served in the UK.
Even though counter-terror police have issued warnings, Aswat is expected to be released without GPS monitoring, as the surveillance of psychiatric patients is considered illegal.
Police have expressed serious concern. Detective Chief Superintendent Gareth Rees noted that Aswat had spoken positively about his time with al-Qaeda and showed intentions to reconnect, posing a “grave risk” to national security.
Aswat trained in al-Qaeda camps before 9/11, served with radical preacher Abu Hamza in running a terror camp in Oregon, and was connected to the 7/7 bombings through phone records. He was arrested in Zambia while having terrorist materials in his possession and fought extradition for nearly a decade before serving a US sentence for terrorism offences.
A UK government source confirmed Aswat has completed his sentence and remains under psychiatric care, with “robust monitoring” planned. A spokeswoman added that authorities would take all lawful measures to protect the public from any potential threat posed by former terrorist offenders.