Terrorist plumber who shared ISIS propaganda video of a suicide attack on the anniversary of the 7/7 bombings before claiming he thought it was just 'pleasant poetry' is jailed for 10 years

A convicted terrorist has been jailed for 10 years after sharing a video glorifying suicide bombings on the anniversary of the 7/7 terror attacks. 

Plumber Shafi Saleem, 34, was investigated after he posted a 15-second clip from a three-minute video on his private social media feed.

Saleem claimed the video, taken from another Instagram account on 7 July 2022, was just 'pleasant poetry'. 

The film included a 'disclaimer' claiming it was for 'research purposes' and 'understanding the wisdom and mindset off men who fought with and for IS.'

The speaker on the clip was identified as al-Idlibi who sings and speaks in Arabic for one minute and 48 seconds.

He says: 'He will make a way out for you. He will make a way out for him from every distress. He will make a way out for him from every calamity.'  

Saleem holds two previous terror-related convictions. 

He was jailed for two years back in 2018 after he used over 20 Twitter and Instagram accounts to spread 'poisonous' propaganda to promote ISIS.

Specialist forensic investigators had trawled through the data, retrieving images of articles from terrorist magazines, videos of Osama Bin Laden and Daesh militants.

He was released in 2019, but breached notification requirements to buy a mobile phone to buy cannabis and look up ISIS propaganda. He was later jailed for 10 months at the Old Bailey.

Saleem, of east London, was jailed on Wednesday at the Old Bailey for a total of 10 years following his latest post on Instagram.

Judge Angela Rafferty told Saleem: 'You have admitted to having extremist views and being radicalised by online videos.'

She said the notification requirements he was subjected to were 'onerous but critical in a safe society.'

'We have established a pattern of offending in relation to Terrorism Act offences.

'I am sure, from the evidence, that you continue to have an extremist mindset.'

The judge rejected the suggestion put forward by the defence that his conduct was reckless rather than deliberate.

'Based on the evidence and the long and persuasive submissions by the prosecution, I am satisfied that you committed the offence deliberately,' the judge said.

Mitigating for Saleem his defence barrister referred to the current conditions in prisons. 

Shannon Revel, defending, said Saleem was on remand in HMP Wandsworth Prison when former soldier Daniel Khalife allegedly escaped last September.

She said: 'All prisoners charged with terror offences were transferred to Belmarsh. They were put on lockdown for a period of time without time out of cells and showers.'

Saleem, denied, but was convicted of one count of disseminating a terrorist publication.  

He was jailed for a total of ten years with an extra 12 months on extended licence. 

He will be subject to a 30 year notification requirement and a five year serious crime prevention order.

Prosecutor Tom Williams said Saleem's latest posts showed a suicide bombing in which a car was blown up as the narrator says 'Grant me the everlasting Jannah'.

'Then another, with a detonation in a second vehicle, the voiceover saying 'I will leave every past sin, My Lord, and turn to satisfaction and bliss.

'And then a third, a white Toyota being blown up this time, the voiceover in the background saying 'I love you, my Lord, and this is my hope that you will accept me, O generous'. The video ends: 'Continue Your Incitement.'

Jurors heard Saleem was a follower of 'yourethernetcable' on Instagram.

'He knew what kind of material it had on it,' the prosecutor said. The page summarised what its viewers would find on there at the top of the page, including 'Weaponry of IS'.

'One of its stories gave advice about how to stay secure on Telegram, an encrypted messaging application.

'Where 'yourethernetcable' included the disclaimer about 'Just' being 'Researchers & Analysts', that is likely, the prosecution say, to have been a cover and an excuse for the extremist material found on the account: to avoid being closed down by Instagram or investigated by the authorities.'

Less than a week before the clip was posted, Saleem told followers on his Instagram account that he 'did not care about non-believers.'

Mr Williams said: 'He said he was a 'soldier of Allah', and that it was all-important to 'spread the true way of Islam', not watered down not as a 'chicken s-t, but as a lion.'

Saleem was investigated after an undercover 'law enforcement operative', using the codename 'Lou' made contact with Saleem online in May 2022.

Mr Williams said: 'As far as Saleem knew, Lou was a white female living in the West Midlands who had converted back to Islam in 2020.

'In fact, Lou is a serving law enforcement operative trained and accredited to conduct undercover operations.

'Lou communicated with Saleem on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Telegram and WhatsApp. All of the contact was online, in typed messages and posts. They have never spoken to each other on the phone or met in real life.

'Lou communicated with Saleem in one-to-one conversations, as well as comments on social media posts, which were captured and retained by taking screenshots and videos.

'Saleem is likely to suggest to you that he thought the clip he put on his Instagram story was 'pleasant poetry', nothing more, and that he didn't even know that the longer version of the video ended with bombings.'

In his police interview Saleem said he was familiar with the video, because it had 'been on TikTok and pretty much everywhere'.

He claimed he had seen it 'hundreds of times' but not the bombing section.

Mr Williams added: 'The prosecution do not accept that he had no idea what the rest of that video contained. He knew where it came from.

'He knew what other material could be found on 'yourethernetcable'. He had 'liked' some of the content.

'It was no coincidence that the clip he posted would take anybody who clicked on it to extremist Islamist material, something in which he had an entrenched interest.' 

Last July he admitted breaching a notification requirement by failing notify police of a change in contact details, namely the use of a mobile telephone number.

Saleem had also admitted threatening behaviour towards a detective constable based on his sexual orientation.

His appalling criminal record dates back to when he was 16.

He was part of a mob of youths who stormed a bus carrying schoolchildren in east London in November 2005.

One boy suffered broken bones and cuts to his leg while his friend was slashed across the arm when he tried to intervene.