For the curious:
Send your questions to Moazzam Begg, or read those posted, or listen in at 18:00 GMT. (Sorry, the link’s gone as they’re now online.)
[quote]The 37-year-old from Birmingham was arrested in February 2002 and held at the Bagram air base in Afghanistan before being sent to the US naval base in Cuba in early 2003.
Mr Begg has admitted going to two training camps in Afghanistan, but said he never took up arms against Britain. He claims he was tortured by the CIA while he was held in Afghanistan, but was not mistreated in Cuba.[/quote]
[quote]The 37-year-old from Birmingham was arrested in February 2002 and held at the Bagram air base in Afghanistan before being sent to the US naval base in Cuba in early 2003.
Mr Begg has admitted going to two training camps in Afghanistan, but said he never took up arms against Britain. He claims he was tortured by the CIA while he was held in Afghanistan, but was not mistreated in Cuba.[/quote][/quote]
My heart goes out to him. Do you have his address? I’ll ask my Mom to bake him a nice fruitcake.
[quote]The 37-year-old from Birmingham was arrested in February 2002 and held at the Bagram air base in Afghanistan before being sent to the US naval base in Cuba in early 2003.
Mr Begg has admitted going to two training camps in Afghanistan, but said he never took up arms against Britain. He claims he was tortured by the CIA while he was held in Afghanistan, but was not mistreated in Cuba.[/quote][/quote]
My heart goes out to him. Do you have his address? I’ll ask my Mom to bake him a nice fruitcake.[/quote]
That’s very kind of you. My heart goes out to him as well. We should throw a little tea party for him. Your mom can bring the fruitcake, and I’ll make everyone crumpets, or perhaps some nice sesame cakes. We’ll sip our piping hot English tea, and hopefully, just hopefully, this wonderful saint of a man can tell us all about his lovely time at the two terrorist training camps he attended. No doubt he’ll regale us with his maniacal vision of world conquest and mass destruction. And like Bin Laden (who perhaps he is acquainted with?) he can smile pleasantly and calmly explain why Western civilization is a plague on the earth, why we must all submit to Islamic rule or die, and why God wants your mother to wear a burka, and if she doesn’t go drape a curtain over her head right this fucking instant, he’s going to beat her to death.
I can’t wait to listen to the interview. I mean, who wouldn’t want to listen to the precious words of this living saint?
I don’t know. I wasn’t all that interested in hearing him, but I am interested in hearing the questions posed. Oh hell, here’s the feedback link and a message from the editor:
[quote]We’ve had a number of e-mails complaining of our decision to put your calls to freed Guantanamo Bay inmate Moazzam Begg on today’s programme.
Here’s a sample of some of the complaints:
"Why is the BBC giving a self confessed Al Qaeda supporter/activist/terrorist a platform to spread their propaganda and lies ?"
"Perhaps if they'd crashed a few plains (sic) into buildings in your country you would feel different. You should stop trying to defend these people and start looking at everything they've done and are doing to harm people."
"It is quite incredible that the BBC should give you a platform to propagate your extremist viewpoints"
There are a number of points to deal with here. Firstly, we’re not giving him a “platform” any more than we give anyone else a platform. He’s been invited on to the programme to answer YOUR questions and so far, there are hundreds of them. Secondly, Moazzam Begg has not been found guilty of anything. No charges have been brought, he’s faced no trial and is not therefore, in the eyes of the law, a criminal or a terrorist.
Thirdly, I believe Mr Begg’s experiences are important to hear about (and judging by the massive response you think this too whatever you think of him personally) given the ongoing news story surrounding the use of Guantanamo Bay and what the US calls the “war on terror”. Many of you have e-mailed to say that you instinctively disagree with him, but you want to hear his views. [/quote]
[quote=“Tigerman”][quote=“Jaboney”]Oh hell, here’s the feedback link and a message from the editor:
WTF?
He spent time, of his own free will, at two… not one… TWO al Qaeda terrorist training camps.
Fuck him.[/quote]
In deed. However, the first question that came to my mind was not why the BBC was putting him on TV, but why in the hell the US government let him out of Guantanamo in the first place. I don’t like the fact that we have that prison, but if we’re going to have it, is this guy not the sort of person who belongs there?
[quote=“Jive Turkey”]
In deed. However, the first question that came to my mind was not why the BBC was putting him on TV, but why in the hell the US government let him out of Guantanamo in the first place. I don’t like the fact that we have that prison, but if we’re going to have it, is this guy not the sort of person who belongs there?[/quote]
