More extremist posters appear in East London
More extremist posters have been discovered in the East London borough of Tower Hamlets.
It is understood the posters were found last Thursday morning at council-managed housing blocks in Shadwell, next to the DLR and Overground station.
They state: “You are entering a Shariah controlled zone. Islamic rules enforced.”
Underneath, images declare that smoking, alcohol, music, drugs, prostitution and porn are forbidden.
Although they do not mention homosexuality, the posters are expected to cause concern among the local gay population.
In June, an 18-year-old man was fined £100 after he was convicted of distributing stickers declaring parts of Tower Hamlets a “gay-free zone”.
The latest posters are identical to ones found in Waltham Forest and Newham.
Islamic preacher Anjem Choudary, who said in 2008 that gays should be stoned to death, has claimed responsibility for the campaign.
The former al-Muhajiroun and Islam4UK leader, speaking about the posters found in Waltham Forest, told the Daily Star last week that the campaign would counter Prevent, the government’s anti-terrorism strategy.
He said: “This will mean this is an area where the Muslim community will not tolerate drugs, alcohol, pornography, gambling, usury, free mixing between the sexes – the fruits if you like of Western civilisation.
“This will be a very heavy leafleting campaign aimed at both the Muslim and non-Muslim community in terms of what the Sharia means economically, socially and politically.”
Earlier this year, he claimed he had “thousands” of people willing to patrol streets up and down the UK to dissuade people from anti-Islamic behaviour.
A police spokeswoman said: “We are aware of a limit [sic] number of posters appearing in Waltham Forest, Tower Hamlets and Newham.
“Officers are working closely with the local authority to have the posters removed as soon as possible.”
Tower Hamlets council said: “The posters have been brought to our attention and with our partners, we have been removing them as and when they have appeared, and will continue to monitor the situation.
“We treat issues like this very seriously, and the matter is being looked into further by our Hate Crime Team who are working alongside the local police.
“If any further posters are identified by the public, we would urge them to report it to the Metropolitan police on 0033 123 1212.”
