Thinktank accuses Saudi regime over hate literature

Matthew Weaver and agencies
Guardian Unlimited

The controversial state visit of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, which got under way today with a lavish ceremony, has prompted new criticism over his regime's alleged role in distributing hate literature in British mosques.

The Policy Exchange thinktank found extremist literature in a quarter of the 100 mosques and Islamic institutions it visited, including London Central Mosque in Regent's Park, which is funded by Saudi Arabia.

Some of the literature advocated violent jihad, murdering gay people and stoning adulterers, its researchers found.

Most of the material is produced by agencies closely linked to the Saudi regime, according to the investigation.

The prime minister, Gordon Brown, was urged to challenge King Abdullah about the literature when he meets him tomorrow.

The government is already under pressure to raise concerns that the regime is involved in torture and other human rights abuses.

Researchers from the right-of-centre thinktank spent more than a year visiting nearly 100 Muslim religious institutions across the country, and found extremist material was available - either openly or "under the table" - in around 25.

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