Al Qaida-inspired student who stabbed MP can be freed from prison
A student who tried to murder a Labour MP after watching radical online lectures by an al Qaida cleric can be released from prison, the Parole Board has said.
Roshonara Choudhry, then 21, was jailed for life for a minimum of 15 years for stabbing Sir Stephen Timms twice in the stomach in May 2010, and for two offences of possessing an offensive weapon.
The attack on the now social security minister is thought to be the first al Qaida-inspired attempt to assassinate a politician on British soil.
The former King's College London student knifed East Ham MP Sir Stephen as he held a constituency surgery at the Beckton Globe community centre in east London, smiling and pretending she was going to shake hands with him before stabbing him.
After she was arrested she told detectives the stabbing was 'punishment' and 'to get revenge for the people of Iraq'.
But after a Parole Board hearing on May 20 this year, a panel decided she could be freed from jail.
A decision summary said: 'After considering the circumstances of her offending, the progress made while in custody and the evidence presented at the hearing and in the dossier, the panel was satisfied that imprisonment was no longer necessary for the protection of the public.'
The document said that at the time of the attempted murder, Choudhry, now 36, had risk factors of problems with family relationships, development of extreme beliefs about the world and willingness to use violence to address perceived injustices.
But she had engaged in programmes in prison to understand how her extreme beliefs developed and her conduct in prison was described as 'exemplary'.
The summary added: 'Ms Choudhry was assessed as having shown a very high level of insight and understanding of herself.
'She had consistently shown over many years that she no longer held the same beliefs, that she was able to manage her emotional wellbeing effectively and she would no longer be likely to be influenced by other people with strong negative views, having developed the ability to critically evaluate information and to seek help from professionals if she needs it.'
The document said the panel did not receive a victim impact statement, or representations from the justice secretary.
It was recommended that Choudhry be released on licence under conditions such as living at a designated address, with a specific curfew and subject to an exclusion zone to avoid contact with Sir Stephen.
A Parole Board spokesman said: 'Parole Board decisions are solely focused on what risk a prisoner could represent to the public if released and whether that risk is manageable in the community.
'Parole reviews are undertaken thoroughly and with extreme care. Protecting the public is our number one priority.'
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