Muslim man fined for burning poppy on Armistice Day...

A Muslim extremist has been fined £50 for burning poppies and chanting hate slogans on Armistice Day.

:: The above video footage has been muted.

Emdadur Choudhury, 26, was part of a demonstration by members of Muslims Against Crusaders who protested at the end of a march celebrating the UK's armed forces.

The group chanted through a two-minute silence with slogans such as: "British soldiers, burn in hell."

Choudhury waved a protest flag and then set fire to two large plastic poppies.

It insults the memory of the dead. It insults those that commemorate the dead.

Chief magistrate Howard Riddle

Witness Tony Kibble, whose grandfather was a WW2 veteran, said he felt "sick inside".

The incident caused scuffles with members of the right-wing English Defence League who had been kept apart from police.

An officer was hurt during the arrest of Choudhury and fellow protestor Mohammed Haque, who was found not guilty.

Choudhury was convicted of actions "likely to cause harassment, harm or distress."

Chief magistrate Howard Riddle described it as "behaviour that is bound to be seen as insulting".

Emdadur Choudhury shouts at English Defence League supporters outside Belmarsh Magistrates Court

Choudhury said he was exercising his "right to freedom of expression"

He said: "It insults the memory of the dead. It insults those that commemorate the dead.

"It insults those who have lost loved ones. It insults those who use this occasion publicly to show their gratitude for lives sacrificed."

Mr Riddle said he had considered Choudhury's human rights of free speech, but "freedom of expression is not unlimited".

Shaun Rusling, vice-chairman of the National Gulf War Veterans and Families Association, said that every serviceman in the country would see the sentence as "disgusting".

He said: "If we set fire to a Quran there would be uproar and they would go after us but because this is Britain people just get upset. It is a futile sentence.

For them to insult those who have given their lives for freedom is an affront.

Shaun Rusling, National Gulf War Veterans and Families Association

Mr Rusling, who served in the first Gulf war and whose grandfather and father served in the first and second world wars, said the soft touch would only encourage the group to make even more radical and offensive forms of protests.

"For them to insult those who have given their lives for freedom is an affront. It is one law for them and one law for others," he said.

"Remembrance Day is a very special day for those in the armed forces. It is a day when we remember those who have lost their lives for freedom and fighting for their country.

"The contradiction in their behaviour is that it is the armed forces who have given them the right to protest and free speech.

"I do not object to their right to protest, but what I do object to is for them to insult the people who have fought for their country to give them that right.

File photo dated 11/11/10 of Muslims Against Crusades protesters burning poppies during the two-minute silence on the anniversary of Armistice day

Protesters chanted through a two-minute silence

Muslim Labour MP Khalid Mahmood also said the sentence was not adequate to make up for the hurt it had caused.

Mr Mahmood, MP for Birmingham Perry Barr, said: "They should be made to pay costs and really £50 is not enough. We don't take it seriously enough, he hurt a lot of people - people who are simply going out and doing their jobs.

"Protests against the government, protests against the politicians who put the soldiers there - but do not protest against the people who are simply doing their jobs.

"I really don't think it is acceptable to protest against people who have died for their country."

The Royal British Legion said it did not want to give the protestors more publicity, but a spokesman added: "The poppy is a symbol of sacrifice and valour.

"The two-minute silence is a time for reflection, not political protest."

Choudhury was not in court to hear his sentence.

His £50 fine was means tested after his lawyer said he earned £480 a month from part-time work and got £792 a month benefits.

The maximum fine for his offence - the least serious of public order crimes - is £1,000.