Court Hears Teen Sought to Impart Extremist Views

A court has been informed that a teenager secured a position at an Islamic Sunday school with the intention of instructing young children in her “extremist” beliefs. Dzhamilya Timaeva, 19, of Windsor, allegedly considered it a “duty” of her Islamic faith to “wage war against non-believers”. She is currently facing trial at the Old Bailey on charges of four counts of disseminating terrorist publications and one count of possessing a document for terrorist purposes. Prosecutor Gareth Weetman stated that Ms. Timaeva organized the printing of a booklet titled The Little Muwahideen. The court was told that the book, despite its “colourful, cartoon” style, contained sections advocating for the waging of war for Islam and characterized jihad as “obligatory fighting” for Allah. Additionally, the publication featured a section addressing “Hatred for the sake of Allah.” Mr. Weetman asserted that the content aimed “not just about teaching the basics of Islam but indoctrinating young minds.” He further indicated that law enforcement discovered the defendant had prepared a schedule of lessons, commencing in September 2022, which cited specific pages from the Muwahideen book for children’s reference. Furthermore, she had transmitted a draft curriculum to the chairperson of the Tawheed Islamic Education Centre in Maidenhead, an organization that offered weekend classes for children. “It follows this wasn’t a distant dream of the defendant to teach young children the extremist and intolerant notions in this book,” Mr. Weetman commented, adding, “She had printed it and arranged to attend classes to do so.” The prosecutor noted that this was not the sole venue where Ms. Timaeva intended to instruct young children; in March 2023, an investigating officer located her name on a list of teachers for the Windsor Muslim Association. Jurors were additionally presented with an ISIS video, titled “Incite the Believers,” which police had retrieved from the defendant’s mobile phone in October 2022. The video advocates for jihad and urges viewers to execute assaults through the use of fire, specifically “by burning buildings, forests and agricultural land.” The court was informed that notes titled “Permissibility of Suicidal Operations” were also discovered on the defendant’s phone. Jurors were apprised of another note, named “The woman I want to be/Ideal version of myself,” which referenced “being the mother of the soldiers of Allah… the one who raised them and incited them to jihad.” The prosecution posited that these notes offered significant insight into “how extremist” the defendant’s mindset had become by 2022. The trial, scheduled to span four weeks, is ongoing. The defendant refutes the charges.