The highest-ranking member of al-Qaeda jailed in Britain could be cleared for release next month.
Terror boss Rangzieb Ahmed, who is thought to have links with the terrorists behind the 7/7 London Tube and bus bombings, will appear before a parole board 11 years after getting a life sentence for plotting attacks.
Ahmed’s bid for freedom comes after Usman Khan, 28, murdered Saskia Jones, 23, and Jack Merritt, 25, at London Bridge less than a year after being released from prison.
Following last Friday’s attack, PM Boris Johnson announced a top-level review into the licence conditions around convicted terrorists who are now out of jail.
Ahmed, 43, from Rochdale, was jailed in Manchester in 2008 for a minimum of 10 years after a probe into a network of Islamic terrorists stretching from Manchester to Pakistan.
He was accused of playing a central role in linking UK al-Qaeda sympathisers with commanders overseas.
Ahmed was caught with notebooks containing details of terror contacts in invisible ink.
Handing down the life sentence, Mr Justice Saunders told him: “You were a not insignificant member of al-Qaeda, a terror group that is prepared to kill and maim innocent people indiscriminately.
“I am satisfied you are dedicated to the cause of Islamic terrorism. You are an intelligent, capable and superficially reasonable man who is involved in terrorism. That makes you an extremely dangerous man.”
He ruled Ahmed should only be considered for parole when he was no longer thought a danger to the public and no longer radicalised.
Counter-terror chiefs were not sure where Ahmed planned to strike, but were convinced an attack was imminent.
He was jailed for being an al-Qaeda member and possessing a document for terror purposes.
He reportedly had links with the fanatics behind bombings in London on July 7, 2005, which killed 52 people and injured 700.
Ahmed is also suspected of links with extremists who carried out a failed plot to detonate more bombs in the capital two weeks later.
A Parole Board spokeswoman said: “An oral hearing has been listed for the parole review of Rangzieb Ahmed to take place in January 2020.
“The job of the Parole Board is to determine if someone would represent a significant risk to the public after release. Public safety is our number one priority.”
