Islamist Inmate Sues, Says Forced to Eat Kosher Food

Incarcerated Islamist preacher who called for murdering Jews complains about being forced to eat kosher food.

By Benjamin Kerstein, The Algemeiner

A notorious Islamist preacher who was convicted of inciting the murder of Jews and is now incarcerated in a Colorado prison for supporting terrorism has filed a lawsuit because, among other things, he is allegedly being forced to eat kosher food.

Abu Hamza, who was born Mustafa Kamel Mustafa in Egypt, first became notorious as the head of the Finsbury Park Mosque in London. He was arrested in 2004 and charged with 16 offenses, among them anti-Semitic incitement to murder. He was convicted on 11 of the charges.

The US later applied to extradite Abu Hamza on charges of involvement in hostage taking, collaborating with Al Qaeda, supporting jihad, and fostering the creation of training camps for terrorists.

After nearly a decade of legal wrangling, in which Hamza and his lawyers repeatedly attempted to exploit human rights law to prevent the extradition, the US request was granted and Hamza was found guilty in 2014.

Since then, he has been incarcerated at the “supermax” ADX Florence prison in Colorado.

According to Hamza and his lawyers, however, aiding terrorism and calling for the murder of Jews pale before the horrors of eating kosher food.

The preacher, who is blind in one eye and lost both his hands under unclear circumstances, has filed his lawsuit because, among other things, he is forced to open food packages with his teeth, the UK’s Sunday Times reported. As a result, his teeth are falling out and are in an advanced state of decay.

Because of this, it is claimed, he cannot eat halal meals and is forced to eat kosher food, which he says is “religiously stressful.”

In his lawsuit against Attorney General William Barr, Hamza claims he is under psychological stress because of this and other “inhuman” conditions in the prison.

Besides the kosher food and tooth problems, Abu Hamza says his disability prevents him from using his bathroom, which leads him to frequently soil himself. In addition, he complains that he has little sunlight and hasn’t had his toenails clipped for long periods.

ADX Florence is famous for its high-profile inmates, who are kept isolated in their cells and only allowed out for one hour a day. The inmates include Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 1993 World Trade Center bomber Ramzi Yousef, Oklahoma City bomber Terry Nichols, “Shoe Bomber” Richard Reid, and the notorious “Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski.