Bilal Abdulla, the accused in the London car bombings and Glasgow airport plot, has accepted that he is a terrorist "by the definition of the [Terrorist] Act, according to English law" and that it was his "aim to change opinion using violence, using fire devices".
Abdulla also said "Everyone was saying you are a terrorist, you are arrested under the Terrorism Act and so forth. That is my case in a nutshell. I am told I am a terrorist, but is your government not a terrorist, is your army not a terrorist?"
This, of course, refers to Abdulla's apparent desire to highlight the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Abdulla is alleged to have crashed into Glasgow airport in a vehicle containing petrol and gas canisters, and along with Dr Mohammed Asha, is accused of conspiracy to murder and to cause explosions.
Abdulla has denied wanting to injure anyone; and told the jury that after the failed attacks on London's West End, he was planning on catching a flight to Iraq. He was on his way to the airport when Khafeel Ahmed apparently crashed into the airport terminal without warning.
According to Abdulla, Ahmed "drove through the barrier and I got alarmed and I shouted 'What are you doing, what is happening?' I had never seen Kafeel's face like that in my life. He was determined, his foot was on the accelerator and he did not respond to me at all."
Dr Abdulla then admitted to throwing petrol bombs as he got out of the burning vehicle, but that he tossed them away in self-defence. He said that the other petrol bombs were lit by accident in the process, and went on to say that "This incident, if it was to kill people or cause an explosion, we would not have done it that way. It looks very clumsy."
