London, UK, September 5 – An article in yesterday's Independent on Sunday that alleged that the non-violent Islamic political party Hizb ut-Tahrir had "secret plans" to target "vulnerable" young Muslims at UK universities has been exposed as a complete fabrication of the truth. The article relied heavily on alleged quotes from Faisal Hanjra, a member of the Federation of Student Islamic Societies [FOSIS]. The newspaper alleged that he had warned that Hizb ut-Tahrir had secret plans to target vulnerable young Muslims.

The newspaper allegations were exposed when FOSIS issued a press release earlier today that confirmed that the comments had either been fabricated or taken out of context. In the FOSIS press release, Faisal Hanjra states, "It is ironic that the apparent quotes used were taken from a conference which specifically emphasised the need for responsible journalism. It is important that we do not get caught up in media hype and conjecture. Hizb ut-Tahrir UK is a non-violent organisation that operates within the law of the United Kingdom. Using emotive terms such as 'banned' and 'militants' leads one to question the intentions of the reporters who wrote this article. Deliberately attributing words to myself, words I did not use and quoting me out of context serves only to drive a wedge between members of the Muslim community and leads to a negatively skewed image of the Muslim population. At a time when the Muslim student community needs to be portrayed in its true light, this is an incredibly irresponsible act."

Dr Imran Waheed, a media representative of Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain, said, "The Independent on Sunday did not contact us for comment about these outlandish allegations. We are an open organisation and our non-violent political work is carried out openly and not undercover as the article erroneously suggests. Indeed on the day this article was published, we held an open conference in Central London that was attended by over 1,000 delegates."

"I have written to the editor of the Independent on Sunday to demand an explanation for this fabricated story and an immediate retraction and apology. Journalists have a responsibility to the public at large to report the facts and not mere conjecture or hearsay; this is particularly the case when an atmosphere of hysteria has been whipped up around the Muslim community."

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Notes to Editors:

The letter from Dr Imran Waheed to the Editor of the Independent on Sunday can be found at www.hizb.org.uk

The full press release from FOSIS can be found at
http://www.fosis.org.uk/sac/independent_onsunday.htm