Abu Hamza, radical imam, sentenced to life in terror case

An Islamic cleric convicted of terrorism charges in a 1998 kidnapping that killed four tourists in Yemen and in failed plans to build a terrorist training camp in the U.S. was sentenced Friday to life in prison by a judge who called his actions "barbaric" and "misguided."

• AbuHamza, London imam, convicted in U.S. terrorism trial

MustafaKamelMustafa, 56, remained composed as U.S. District Judge Katherine Forrest announced the sentence, saying it was significant that "you have not expressed sympathy or remorse for the victims of the Yemeni kidnapping."

AbuHamza'sblood-soaked journey from cleric to convict, from Imam to inmate, is now complete- U.S. AttorneyPreetBharara

She called his actions "barbaric, misguided and wrong" and read aloud the names of the victims, saying: "With the passage of time, their names have not been lost."

Forrest said a life sentence was necessary in part because she believedMustafahad "not had a change of heart" and would try to inspire others to commit violence if he were released.

Mustafa'slawyers had urged the judge to take into account that he is missing hands and forearms from what he described from the witness stand as a 1993 engineering accident involving explosives. He also suffers from psoriasis, diabetes and high blood pressure.

Maintained innocence

But Forrest said she will not prejudge the ability of the Federal Bureau of Prisons to properly evaluateMustafa'sneeds and to designate an appropriate prison.

Given a chance to speak,Mustafamaintained his innocence and called for a worldwide investigation into the cause of the World TradeCenter'scollapse on Sept. 11, 2001. But otherwise, he spent most of 15 minutes complaining about his difficulties in prison as a double amputee with other health problems.

In May,a jury convictedMustafaof aiding terrorists who kidnapped tourists in Yemen by consulting with their leader and by providing them with a satellite phone. He also was convicted of supporting terrorism by sending a recruit to Afghanistan for terror training and by helping others plot to open a terror training camp in Oregon.

In a statement, U.S. AttorneyPreetBhararasaid: "AbuHamza'sblood-soaked journey from cleric to convict, from Imam to inmate, is now complete."

Defenceattorney Sam Schmidt told Forrest on Friday that housingMustafa, also known asAbuHamzaal-Masri, at Colorado'sSupermaxfederal prison, sometimes referred to as the "Alcatraz of the Rockies," would violate assurances the United States made to British judges to secure his 2012 extradition to America.

Crimes had a global span

Assistant U.S. Attorney Edward Kim saidMustafa'seffort to dictate where he was imprisoned was part of his effort to remain in control.

Kim told Forrest that messagesMustafarepeatedly delivered from his pulpit at theFinsburyPark Mosque in London were hate-filled.

"His ideology was simple and it was brutal non-Muslims should be killed," he said.

Kim saidMustafawas not convicted for his words.

"The defendant's crimes truly spanned the globe from Yemen to Afghanistan to the United States," he said.

Forrest said she reviewed tapes of an interview hostage victim Mary Quin, a U.S. citizen who now lives in NewZealand, conducted withMustafain his London mosque as she prepared to write a book.

The judge said she was struck thatMustafareferred to the kidnappings, saying: "We didn't know it would be that bad."

She said it was as if "you were remarking on a day that had rain when you thought there would be sunshine."