Islamism supersized? Well, almost …

I'm a bit late in catching up on the story, but it seems that plans for a proposed London mega-mosque—capable of accommodating some 70,000 of the worshippers near the site of the 2012 Olympic village—have been blocked.

The Telegraph reported last month:

Ruth Kelly's Whitehall department is expected to refuse planning permission for the London Markaz, which would be the biggest religious building in Britain with room for 70,000 worshippers.

Backers want the £300 million mosque, in east London, to serve as a reception centre for athletes and fans from Islamic countries during the 2012 games.

The group behind the plans is Tablighi Jamaat, a Muslim missionary sect whose charitable trust, Anjuman-e-Islahul Muslimeen, has owned the 18-acre site since 1996. Tablighi Jamaat was called "an ante-chamber for fundamentalism" by French security services. Two of the July 7 London suicide bombers are believed to have attended one of its mosques.

The CBN report (video above) will give you an idea what the fuss was all about.

Tablighi Jamaat, meanwhile, has been linked to the murder of Bob Woolmer, the coach of Pakistan's national cricket team.

From OutlookIndia.com:

Did Pakistani cricket coach Bob Woolmer's criticism of the growing influence of the Tablighi Jamaat (TJ) of Pakistan, a jihadi organisation, on many players of the Pakistani cricket team contribute to his brutal murder after Pakistan lost to Ireland in the current World Cup Cricket Tournament in the West Indies?

Coinciding with the inauguration of the tournament, Amir Mir, the well-known Pakistani journalist, had written a disturbing article on the growing influence of the TJ on many members of the Pakistani cricket team and its negative impact on the performance of the team in recent years. His article did not receive the attention it deserved.

Though apparently Tablighi Jamaat wasn't radical enough for convicted shoebomber Richard Reid, it looks like a pretty nasty group.

All in all, I'd have to say it's a good thing the mega-mosque won't be built.