LONDON: British authorities have convicted more than a dozen sex offenders in a northern English city, but children’s advocates expressed outrage that police paid a convicted rapist to infiltrate specially organized parties where young women and girls as young as 15 were plied with drugs and alcohol before being abused.
The revelations came after 17 men and one woman were convicted of or admitted to charges including rape, supplying drugs and inciting prostitution following a series of trials at Newcastle Crown Court. Reporting restrictions imposed by the court prevented details of the cases from emerging until now.
Chief Constable Steve Ashman of Northumbria Police described exploitation as the challenge of this generation and defended the decision to hire the informant, known only as XY. Because of the evidence provided by XY, those convicted in this case will spend lengthy terms in prison, Ashman said, adding that strong punishments were needed to deal with “vile” individuals who target vulnerable people.
“He was a convicted rapist and to some of us the thought of the police engaging with such a person and paying them for information may appear repugnant,” he said. “However, he proved he was in a position whereby he could, and did, alert police to situations which allowed them to prevent offending and provide safeguarding measures toward potential victims.”
The use of such informants is always overseen by a senior police officer and is subject to independent review, he said.
But child rights advocates said that regardless of police officers’ good intentions, their “misguided actions” violated accepted child protection procedures and could have jeopardized the investigation of these abusers. The victims in this case ranged in age from 15 to their early 20s, according to prosecutors.
“We are appalled to learn that police paid a child rapist and planted him in the midst of vulnerable young girls,” said Jon Brown of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. “You just couldn’t make it up.”
The informant’s role was revealed when defense attorneys challenged some prosecution evidence. XY told the court he had to go along with what was happening so he could continue to gather evidence.
“I was chilling with the boys,” he said during an abuse of process hearing. “I had to make it look like I was their friend.”
British prosecutors convict 17 men, 1 woman of sex crimes
British prosecutors convict 17 men, 1 woman of sex crimes
Trump administration labels 3 Muslim Brotherhood branches as terrorist organizations
- The State Department designated the Lebanese branch a foreign terrorist organization
- “These designations reflect the opening actions of an ongoing, sustained effort to thwart Muslim Brotherhood chapters’ violence,” Rubio said
WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s administration has made good on its pledge to label three Middle Eastern branches of the Muslim Brotherhood as terrorist organizations, imposing sanctions on them and their members in a decision that could have implications for US relationships with allies Qatar and Turkiye.
The Treasury and State departments announced the actions Tuesday against the Lebanese, Jordanian and Egyptian chapters of the Muslim Brotherhood, which they said pose a risk to the United States and American interests.
The State Department designated the Lebanese branch a foreign terrorist organization, the most severe of the labels, which makes it a criminal offense to provide material support to the group. The Jordanian and Egyptian branches were listed by Treasury as specially designated global terrorists for providing support to Hamas.
“These designations reflect the opening actions of an ongoing, sustained effort to thwart Muslim Brotherhood chapters’ violence and destabilization wherever it occurs,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement. “The United States will use all available tools to deprive these Muslim Brotherhood chapters of the resources to engage in or support terrorism.”
Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent were mandated last year under an executive order signed by Trump to determine the most appropriate way to impose sanctions on the groups, which US officials say engage in or support violence and destabilization campaigns that harm the United States and other regions.
Muslim Brotherhood leaders have said they renounce violence.
Trump’s executive order had singled out the chapters in Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt, noting that a wing of the Lebanese chapter had launched rockets on Israel after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack in Israel that set off the war in Gaza. Leaders of the group in Jordan have provided support to Hamas, the order said.
The Muslim Brotherhood was founded in Egypt in 1928 but was banned in that country in 2013. Jordan announced a sweeping ban on the Muslim Brotherhood in April.
Nathan Brown, a professor of political science and international affairs at George Washington University, said some allies of the US, including the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, would likely be pleased with the designation.
“For other governments where the brotherhood is tolerated, it would be a thorn in bilateral relations,” including in Qatar and Turkiye, he said.
Brown also said a designation on the chapters may have effects on visa and asylum claims for people entering not just the US but also Western European countries and Canada.
“I think this would give immigration officials a stronger basis for suspicion, and it might make courts less likely to question any kind of official action against Brotherhood members who are seeking to stay in this country, seeking political asylum,” he said.
Trump, a Republican, weighed whether to designate the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization in 2019 during his first term in office. Some prominent Trump supporters, including right-wing influencer Laura Loomer, have pushed his administration to take aggressive action against the group.
Two Republican-led state governments — Florida and Texas — designated the group as a terrorist organization this year.
