The UK’s Ministry of Justice has imposed new rules aimed at curbing the spread of Islamist ideology in prisons. The measures, announced in late April, are part of an effort to reduce the terror threat posed by “highly ideologically motivated offenders,” said Ian Acheson, an expert on Islamist radicalization in UK prisons.
The new rules limit the number of books prisoners convicted of terror offenses can keep in their cells to two boxes, totaling 15 kilograms. The goal is to prevent the stockpiling or concealment of extremist literature. The MOJ has also banned prisoners convicted of terror offenses from taking leading roles in religious services to preclude them from exploiting the communal worship of Friday prayers to indoctrinate or radicalize fellow inmates, one in seven of whom is a Muslim.
