Britain releases 40 convicted Islamic terrorists

London, Sep. 9 (ANI): At least 40 convicted Islamic terrorists have been released from British prisons, while another 50 conspirators, including al-Qaeda's Sohail Qureshi, would be free soon, The Sun reports.

At least five of those are still classified as "high risk" and have to be closely monitored by security agencies.

Qureshi, 31, who was arrested in 2006 while trying to travel to Afghanistan to attack British troops, is one of 25 fanatics who will be released within 12 months.

Another 25 will be out within three years. And 40 more are already free men

According to security experts, Britain's justice system is lax compared to the US, where jailed terrorists often never get out.

He was given a four-and-a-half-year prison term. But under Britain's justice system, in which jail sentences are frequently lenient and routinely cut, he will be out in a few weeks.

A senior security source declared: "If this was the United States, a great many of these people coming out soon would have been sentenced to 99 years and locked away for the rest of their lives.

"But in this country much weaker sentences have been handed down and a large percentage of them have received reductions from the Appeal Court. As a result, we are faced with an extremely worrying situation.

A source from MAPPA - which stands for Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements - said: "There are many who will not be given tight supervision. Our biggest concern is that far from being rehabilitated in jail, their attitudes could have been hardened. Prisons have become a major recruiting ground for al-Qaeda."

Hulking thug Andrew Rowe - believed to be a key player in al-Qaeda's European operations - is also among those scheduled for freedom.

Rowe, 38, Muslim convert, was caught returning to Britain through the Channel Tunnel with instructions on firing mortars and secret codes for terror attacks. Former anti-terror cop Peter Clarke called him a "global terrorist".

It is thought there are around 20 recently freed extremists in probation hostels. (ANI)