Kafeel Ahmed
Encyclopedia
Kafeel Ahmed was one of two terrorists behind the 2007 Glasgow International Airport attack
, who later died of his injuries sustained in the attacks.
, India
and raised in Saudi Arabia
during his doctor parents' tenure there. He was an engineer who was studying for a PhD in computational fluid dynamics
. He was often mistakenly referred to as a medical doctor in news reports.
Mobile phone records have shown that, during his 2005-2007 stay in India, Ahmed had frequent communications with Malta, the UK, Finland, Saudi Arabia and Oman. In May 2007, prior to departing to Britain
from his native Bangalore
, he entrusted his mother with a compact disk he said contained some important information on his "project." The disk has been handed over to police for analysis. Although the analysis is not yet complete, it had been revealed that the disk contained speeches by al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden
, propaganda against the United States and Britain, some Jihad
literature and the plight of the Muslims in Iraq
, Afghanistan
and Chechnya
. It transpired that Ahmed attentively followed campaigns in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine
, and frequented Islamist chat rooms on the internet
. Digital material found included graphic depictions of real-life occurrences of torture in Chechnya, hundreds of bomb design from the internet
.
Kafeel was the brother of Dr. Sabeel Ahmed
, also arrested in the aftermath of the attack. A suicide note left behind indicates that the passenger of the vehicle, Bilal Abdullah
, and himself, intended to die in the attack.
According to police sources, he was an engineer pursuing a Ph.D.
in computational fluid dynamics
at Anglia Ruskin University
, in the UK, on the topic of "Computational Approach to Ink-jet Printing of Tactile Maps." He would have earned a bachelor of mechanical engineering from India, and an M.Phil.
degree in aeronautical engineering from Queen's University Belfast. He might have been in the UK as early as September 2003. He is believed to have organised a Chechnya
Day Meeting in his native city of Bangalore, back in February 2006.
As an aeronautics engineer, Ahmed was able to secure employment, from December 2005, to August 2006, with Infotech, an Indian outsourcing company servicing clients such as Airbus and Boeing, before resigning abruptly. It could be possible that he had access to sensitive design information about various aviation companies.
He was a member of the Tablighi Jamaat
missionary sect.
were behind the 2007 London car bombs
plot, and investigations are being carried out to unearth a possible involvement with the deadly 2005 Indian Institute of Science shooting
, an attack with unknown suspects that are still at large.
A Rediff news report reveals that Ahmed was planning on constructing a housing complex on the outskirts of Bangalore
where Islamic Sharia
law would be forcibly implemented on residents, despite India's secular constitution and separation of religion and state. In January this year, Kafeel had disrupted a meeting organised by a Bangalore-based organisation to discuss reform in Islam. Prior to his terrorist attack in Glasgow
, he had visited numerous Islamist websites, including that of the Jamaat al Dawa
, the parent organisation of Islamic terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba
.
. He was held hospitalised at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary
in a critical condition, after he suffered severe burns in the attack. He had suffered burns to 90% of his body, and was not expected to survive—he had already been revived twice as of 4 July. The Sun reported Britain's National Health Service was paying over £5,000 a day to keep him alive, while security sources said this amount reaches £30,000 when security costs are included.
2007 Glasgow International Airport attack
The 2007 Glasgow International Airport attack was a terrorist attack which occurred on Saturday 30 June 2007, at 15:11 BST, when a dark green Jeep Cherokee loaded with propane canisters was driven into the glass doors of the Glasgow International Airport terminal and set ablaze...
, who later died of his injuries sustained in the attacks.
History
Ahmed was an Indian Muslim born in BangaloreBangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and raised in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
during his doctor parents' tenure there. He was an engineer who was studying for a PhD in computational fluid dynamics
Computational fluid dynamics
Computational fluid dynamics, usually abbreviated as CFD, is a branch of fluid mechanics that uses numerical methods and algorithms to solve and analyze problems that involve fluid flows. Computers are used to perform the calculations required to simulate the interaction of liquids and gases with...
. He was often mistakenly referred to as a medical doctor in news reports.
Mobile phone records have shown that, during his 2005-2007 stay in India, Ahmed had frequent communications with Malta, the UK, Finland, Saudi Arabia and Oman. In May 2007, prior to departing to Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
from his native Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
, he entrusted his mother with a compact disk he said contained some important information on his "project." The disk has been handed over to police for analysis. Although the analysis is not yet complete, it had been revealed that the disk contained speeches by al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
, propaganda against the United States and Britain, some Jihad
Jihad
Jihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
literature and the plight of the Muslims in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and Chechnya
Chechnya
The Chechen Republic , commonly referred to as Chechnya , also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria , is a federal subject of Russia . It is located in the southeastern part of Europe in the Northern Caucasus mountains. The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny...
. It transpired that Ahmed attentively followed campaigns in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
, and frequented Islamist chat rooms on the internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. Digital material found included graphic depictions of real-life occurrences of torture in Chechnya, hundreds of bomb design from the internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
.
Kafeel was the brother of Dr. Sabeel Ahmed
Sabeel Ahmed
Dr. Sabeel Ahmed is a suspect arrested after the 2007 Glasgow International Airport attack. He was married to Sarah Fatima,his distant relative, on 21 July 2010 and now resides in Hafoof, Saudi Arabia and practises medicine there...
, also arrested in the aftermath of the attack. A suicide note left behind indicates that the passenger of the vehicle, Bilal Abdullah
Bilal Abdullah
Bilal Talal Samad Abdullah was one of two terrorists behind the 2007 Glasgow International Airport attack, and is currently serving a life sentence with a minimum of 32 years.-History:...
, and himself, intended to die in the attack.
According to police sources, he was an engineer pursuing a Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in computational fluid dynamics
Computational fluid dynamics
Computational fluid dynamics, usually abbreviated as CFD, is a branch of fluid mechanics that uses numerical methods and algorithms to solve and analyze problems that involve fluid flows. Computers are used to perform the calculations required to simulate the interaction of liquids and gases with...
at Anglia Ruskin University
Anglia Ruskin University
Anglia Ruskin University is one of the largest universities in Eastern England, United Kingdom, with a total student population of around 30,000.-History:...
, in the UK, on the topic of "Computational Approach to Ink-jet Printing of Tactile Maps." He would have earned a bachelor of mechanical engineering from India, and an M.Phil.
Master of Philosophy
The Master of Philosophy is a postgraduate research degree.An M.Phil. is a lesser degree than a Doctor of Philosophy , but in many cases it is considered to be a more senior degree than a taught Master's degree, as it is often a thesis-only degree. In some instances, an M.Phil...
degree in aeronautical engineering from Queen's University Belfast. He might have been in the UK as early as September 2003. He is believed to have organised a Chechnya
Chechnya
The Chechen Republic , commonly referred to as Chechnya , also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria , is a federal subject of Russia . It is located in the southeastern part of Europe in the Northern Caucasus mountains. The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny...
Day Meeting in his native city of Bangalore, back in February 2006.
As an aeronautics engineer, Ahmed was able to secure employment, from December 2005, to August 2006, with Infotech, an Indian outsourcing company servicing clients such as Airbus and Boeing, before resigning abruptly. It could be possible that he had access to sensitive design information about various aviation companies.
He was a member of the Tablighi Jamaat
Tablighi Jamaat
Tablighi Jamaat is a religious movement which was founded in 1926 by Muhammad Ilyas al-Kandhlawi in India. The movement primarily aims at Tablighi spiritual reformation by working at the grass roots level, reaching out to Muslims across all social and economic spectra to bring them closer to...
missionary sect.
2007 London car bombs
There are indications that Kafeel Ahmed and Bilal AbdullahBilal Abdullah
Bilal Talal Samad Abdullah was one of two terrorists behind the 2007 Glasgow International Airport attack, and is currently serving a life sentence with a minimum of 32 years.-History:...
were behind the 2007 London car bombs
2007 London car bombs
On 29 June 2007, in London, two car bombs were discovered and disabled before they could be detonated. The first device was left near the Tiger Tiger nightclub in Haymarket at around 01:30, and the second was in Cockspur Street, in the same area of the city....
plot, and investigations are being carried out to unearth a possible involvement with the deadly 2005 Indian Institute of Science shooting
2005 Indian Institute of Science shooting
The December 2005 IISc shooting occurred on Wednesday, 28 December 2005 at the Indian Institute of Science in the Indian city of Bangalore, killing Prof. Munish Chandra Puri of IIT Delhi and injuring four, after two or more unidentified gunmen fired at Puri and others...
, an attack with unknown suspects that are still at large.
A Rediff news report reveals that Ahmed was planning on constructing a housing complex on the outskirts of Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
where Islamic Sharia
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
law would be forcibly implemented on residents, despite India's secular constitution and separation of religion and state. In January this year, Kafeel had disrupted a meeting organised by a Bangalore-based organisation to discuss reform in Islam. Prior to his terrorist attack in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, he had visited numerous Islamist websites, including that of the Jamaat al Dawa
Jamaat al Dawa al Quran
Jamaat al Dawa al Quran is an Pakistani organization notable because American counter-terrorism analysts suspected it had ties to terrorism.American counter-terrorism analysts transliterated the Arabic name into English inconsistently...
, the parent organisation of Islamic terrorist outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba
Lashkar-e-Toiba
Lashkar-e-Taiba – also transliterated as Lashkar-i-Tayyaba, Lashkar-e-Tayyaba, Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, Lashkar-i-Taiba, Lashkar Taiba or LeT – is one of the largest and most active militant Islamist terrorist organizations in South Asia, operating mainly from Pakistan.It was founded by Hafiz Muhammad...
.
Attacks
He was arrested in Great Britain in the aftermath of the 2007 Glasgow International Airport attack2007 Glasgow International Airport attack
The 2007 Glasgow International Airport attack was a terrorist attack which occurred on Saturday 30 June 2007, at 15:11 BST, when a dark green Jeep Cherokee loaded with propane canisters was driven into the glass doors of the Glasgow International Airport terminal and set ablaze...
. He was held hospitalised at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary
Glasgow Royal Infirmary
The Glasgow Royal Infirmary is a large teaching hospital, operated by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde,. With a capacity of around 1000 beds, the hospital campus covers an area of around 20 acres, situated on the north-eastern edge of the city centre of Glasgow, Scotland.-History:Designed by Robert...
in a critical condition, after he suffered severe burns in the attack. He had suffered burns to 90% of his body, and was not expected to survive—he had already been revived twice as of 4 July. The Sun reported Britain's National Health Service was paying over £5,000 a day to keep him alive, while security sources said this amount reaches £30,000 when security costs are included.