Grenfell fire: Woman who made 'Jewish sacrifice' Facebook posts jailed

Tahra Ahmed denied her posts were anti-Semitic, claiming they were "political"

A woman who claimed Grenfell Tower fire victims were "burnt alive in a Jewish sacrifice" has been jailed.

Tahra Ahmed, 51, of Tottenham, posted a "virulently" anti-Semitic conspiracy theory on Facebook, just days after the west London fire killed 72 people.

She also linked Grenfell to an anti-Semitic conspiracy surrounding the 9/11 terror attacks in New York.

Ahmed was jailed for 11 months after being found guilty of two counts of stirring up racial hatred.

During the trial at the Old Bailey, prosecution barrister Hugh French said two of Ahmed's posts had "crossed the line as to what is acceptable in a liberal society".

'Racial hatred'

On 18 June 2017 - four days after the disaster - she posted a video on Facebook of the blaze and referred to it as a Jewish sacrifice.

She stated: "I've been at the scene, at the protest and at the community meetings and have met many of the victims… some who were still in the same clothes they escaped in.

"They are very real and genuine, their pain and suffering is raw and deep and their disgusting neglect by authorities continues.

"Watch the footage of people trapped in the inferno with flames behind them. They were burnt alive in a Jewish sacrifice."

The post went on to link Grenfell to an anti-Semitic conspiracy around the destruction of the Twin Towers.

Mr French said that, while Ahmed's Facebook account demonstrated "strongly held beliefs", the two posts identified were "clear demonstrations of racial hatred".

An examination of Ahmed's Facebook account revealed a history of anti-Semitic comments.

She had claimed her comments were political rather than anti-Semitic but was convicted by the jury.