Mosque trustees claim terrorism accusations are 'motivated by political agendas'

An east London mosque under investigation by the Charity Commission for alleged links to terrorism has vowed to defend itself from all accusations

Trustees of a mosque that is being investigated by the Charity Commission for alleged links to terrorism have said they believe complaints to the commission are "motivated by political and personal agendas" and promised the mosque would "vigorously defend itself from all accusations".

The commission said the inquiry would look into whether the Masjid al-Tawhid mosque had links to individuals connected to terror organisations – including the radical clerics Abu Qatada and Anwar al-Awlaki – and whether trustees had taken proper steps to protect the mosque’s reputation.

But the trust said in a statement today that accusations against it were unfounded and were the result of a year-long dispute over control of the mosque.

Saghir Hussain, the lawyer acting for the trust, said: "We believe that the complaints are motivated by political and personal agendas, and ask the commission to make available to us the written complaint so those motives become clear and can be challenged legally.

"Within the Muslim community accustions of extremism are becoming common, as a way for people to settle scores andgain advantage in organisational and personal disputes. We urge the Charity Commission to exercise caution and deal with underlying issues, not headline-grabbing accusations."