Islamic Cleric Had Terror Handbook, UK Court Told

The Islamic cleric Sheikh Abu Hamza kept a 10-volume terrorism manual in his London home which detailed how to make explosives, fire guns, carry out assassinations, and stage ambushes, a British court was told Wednesday.

The books, called the Encyclopedia of Afghan Jihad, bore a dedication to Osama bin Laden and suggested Big Ben and the Eiffel Tower as targets for attack, the prosecution alleged.

The manual urged that plans "should be laid out" to hit buildings such skyscrapers, ports, airports, nuclear plants, and football stadiums, and it talked about attacking large congregations of people at Christmas.

The former cleric at the Finsbury Park mosque in London faces nine counts of soliciting murder and four charges of inciting racial hatred.