Hizb ut-Tahrir & 3 Brits in an Egyptian jail

There was a *very* long (10 mins) report on Radio 4's Today programme this morning about the plight of 3 British men in jail in Egypt:

Today programme 24/3/05 - Permalink
Zubeida Malik reports on three British men in jail in Egypt, who claim to be wrongfully convicted for promoting an Islamic political group.

Here's some background on the story for those with less time:

BBC: Britons' trial in Egypt begins
Mr Pankhurst, Mr Nawaz and Mr Nisbet claim they were tortured. The trial of three UK men accused of promoting an illegal Islamic group in Egypt was opened on Saturday after long delays.

There was no discussion at all on Today of the organisation the men are supposed to be member of, Hizb ut-Tahrir, so have just done a bit of checking. This organisation is banned in Egypt, legal in Britain, and as far as I know, the men are indeed members of it.

Here's what Hizb ut-Tahrir say about themselves.

And here's another view:

GlobalsSecurity.org
Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami (Islamic Party of Liberation)

Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami (Islamic Party of Liberation) a radical Islamic political movement that seeks 'implementation of pure Islamic doctrine' and the creation of an Islamic caliphate in Central Asia. The group's aim is to resume the Islamic way of life and to convey the Islamic da’wah to the world. The ultimate goal of this secretive sectarian group is to unite the entire ummah, or Islamic world community, into a single caliphate. The aim is to bring the Muslims back to living an Islamic way of life in 'Dar al-Islam' [the land where the rules of Islam are being implemented, as opposed to the non-Islamic world] and in an Islamic society such that all life's affairs in society are administered according to the Shariah rules.
Its basic aim was struggle with infidels and the organization of a universal caliphate embracing all Islamic countries. This objective means bringing the Muslims back to living an Islamic way of life in Dar al-Islam and in an Islamic society such that all of life’s affairs in society are administered according to the Shari’ah rules, and the viewpoint in it is the halal and the haram under the shade of the Islamic State.
....
In 1999, the group was blamed for a series of bomb attacks in the Uzbekistan capital, Tashkent. It is believed by some to clandestinely fund and provide logistical support to a wide range of terrorist operations in Central Asia, and elsewhere, although attacks may be carried out in the names of local groups.
...
In February 2003, the Russian Supreme Court put Hizb ut-Tahrir and 14 other groups on a list of banned terrorist organizations. A month before, Hizb ut-Tahrir was outlawed in Germany on charges of anti-Semitism and anti-Israeli propaganda.

COMMENT

Egyptian jails and security forces are loathesome places, and I don't doubt they have been mistreated, and possibly abandoned by the UK government. But I would have been interested to hear more about the organisation they belong to in the Today report.