Brighton man jailed for 4 years for encouraging terrorism

Abubaker Deghayes, 54, called for jihad "by sword" in a speech when he addressed 50 worshippers, including children, after evening prayers at the Brighton Mosque and Muslim Community Centre in Dyke Road in November 2020.

Sentencing Deghayes, Judge Nigel Lickley described his actions as "reckless" rather than intentional saying his exhortations to jihad came at the end of a speech that was not rehearsed prior to the event.

He told Deghayes: "You said at that point you were 'rolling with the speech'. I take that to mean that you got carried away by the audience."

Deghayes, who is originally from Libya, denied wrongdoing and said he was explaining the meaning of jihad by the sword as self-defence.

Prosecutor Ben Lloyd had told jurors Deghayes's speech was not given "innocently or naively". He said: "The prosecution case is clear. By the defendant's words and gestures he was encouraging people to undertake violent jihad. The defendant's speech demonstrates him to be an Islamic extremist. He is someone who believes in the use of violence in the cause of Islam."