Nottingham Indymedia: 'academic_freedom'

University whistleblower suspended

Wed, 04 May 2011 18:39:08 +0000

Dr Rod Thornton was suspended this afternoon by Nottingham University for exposing how the university caused the arrest of two innocent men as suspected terrorists. The new whistle-blowing report from Dr Thornton – ‘How a student’s use of a library book became a “major Islamist plot”’ – exposed how senior University management reported the men and undertook a subsequent campaign to discredit them for being in possession of three publicly available documents, all available from the university’s own library.

'Al-Qaeda Arrest' Whistleblower Silenced

Wed, 04 May 2011 08:59:03 +0000

The website of the British International Studies Association [1] has removed a whistle-blowing article written by Dr Rod Thornton [2], a former soldier turned academic who served in a counter-terrorism role in Northern Ireland. Dr Thornton’s article – ‘How a student’s use of a library book became a “major Islamist plot”’ - exposes how senior management at the University of Nottingham caused two men of ethnic minority background – Rizwaan Sabir, an MA student and Hicham Yezza, a member of staff - to be arrested and detained for six days under the Terrorism Act 2000 [3]. The removal of his article has allegedly come as a result of pressure on the website’s editors by the University of Nottingham, ahead of its general release to the public and media today.

New light shed on the Nottingham Two

Fri, 29 Apr 2011 22:27:37 +0000

An extensive paper on the case of the Nottingham Two has been published by University of Nottingham academic, Rod Thornton. Pieced together from heavily redacted Freedom of Information requests, Rizwaan Sabir’s Data Protection Access requests and even meetings with Special Branch officers, it paints a damning picture of the University’s management. Entitled Radicalisation at universities or radicalisation by universities? it describes ‘How a student’s use of a library book became a “major Islamist plot”’.

Newswire: Islamophobia and the Nottingham Two | Radicalisation at Universities... | Interview with Hicham Yezza & Rizwaan Sabir

Previous features: Anger Over "Terror Arrests" at Nottingham University | Nottingham Uni Detainee Innocent But Still Facing Deportation | Hundreds Join Demo for Academic Freedom and Against Deportation | Campaign Victories As Hich And Amdani Are Released On Bail