41 organisations call for the immediate review of the unjust Birmingham 4 convictions

Joint Statement: The Birmingham 4

We, the undersigned, call for urgent action in the case of Naweed Ali, Khobaib Hussain, Mohibur Rahman and Tahir Aziz, known as the Birmingham 4.

We demand:

• The immediate review and re-opening of this case by the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) under the exceptional circumstances provision, which allows a new appeal even if there is no new evidence.
• A full and independent investigation into the conduct of West Midlands Police in this case
• That the convictions be quashed and the men immediately released

In 2017, the Birmingham 4 were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment following a counter-terrorism investigation by West Midlands Police. Serious concerns have been raised by their lawyers making these convictions unsafe.

These concerns include allegations of evidence being improperly introduced, police being in contempt of court during the trial, and the absence of clear forensic or video evidence linking the defendants to the items in question. Taken together, these issues raise significant questions about whether the men received a fair trial.

This case bears troubling similarities to previous miscarriages of justice in Britain. One such example would be the Birmingham Six trial, when six Irish men - Hugh Callaghan, Patrick Joseph Hill, Gerard Hunter, Richard McIlkenny, William Power and John Walker - were each sentenced to life in 1975, only to have their convictions quashed by the Court of Appeal in 1991 which led to the CCRC being established.

It has now been over two years since an application was submitted to the CCRC. Given the gravity of the concerns raised, continued delays risk undermining confidence in the justice system.

We urge the CCRC and relevant authorities to act swiftly to ensure that justice is both done and seen to be done.

Signed:

CAGE

APPEAL

Justice Gap

JENGbA

Black Lives Matter UK

Healing Justice London

Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers

Maslaha

Muslim Engagement and Development

Deen1fied

Islam21c

Kids of Colour

Northern Police Monitoring Project

Filton25

Association of Student Activism for Palestine

Hoque Community

Defend Our Juries

The Future Justice Project

Lighthouse Advocacy

Nakheel Women's Group

Safinah Collective

Free the Brize Norton 6

Documenting Oppression Against Muslims

Active Muslims Leicester

Bromley By Bow Ikhwah

Trident Ploughshares

XR Peace UK

Partisan Defence Committee

Revolutionary Communist Group

Muslim Social Justice Initiative

The Muslim Collab

Friends of Palestine Society University of Birmingham

Leicester Massive

London Irish Brigade

Activist Independent Movement

Chorley for Palestine

Ikhwa

Muslim Youth Network

QMUL Action for Palestine

Stop the War Coalition Birmingham 

Anticarceral Solidarity