A leading radical Islamist group which Tony Blair wants to ban is recruiting "vulnerable" young Muslim students at British universities under several cover names, The Independent on Sunday can reveal. Hizb ut-Tahrir, banned from campuses by the National Union of Students, has set up front organisations at more than a dozen universities with innocuous-sounding names such as the Ideological Society, the Millennium Forum and the New World Society.They have secured access to freshers' fairs across the country and will receive funding from student unions to help them operate. Muslim student leaders warned that Hizb would target "vulnerable" young Muslims when the new university term starts later this month. "Before, we could stop the recruitment; we could save vulnerable people," said Faisal Hanjra, a spokesman for the Federation of Student Islamic Societies. "Now, we have no idea who is targeting whom." Hizb failed to respond when approached for comment.
News of the plan by the militant Hizb to set up front organisations comes as police and intelligence agencies scrutinise a videotape which associates al-Qa'ida with the London suicide bombings on 7 July, in which 52 commuters died. The warning of "war" from Mohammed Sidique Khan, the presumed leader of the bombers, has emphasised the danger that other British-born Muslims will be recruited for terrorism. Hizb ut-Tahrir and another extreme group, al-Muhajiroun, face being banned under measures the Government has proposed in the wake of the attacks. Although both deny supporting violence, they are accused of radicalising young Muslims to the point where they attract the attention of terrorist recruiters.