[JURIST] UK Home Secretary Charles Clarke [official profile] was pressured by UK Prime Minister Tony Blair [official website] to ban two Islamic parties in Great Britain after the July 2005 London bombings [JURIST news archive], according to civil service e-mails leaked [New Statesman article] to a British magazine. The e-mails indicate that Blair wanted to ban the radical Islamic party Hizb-ut-Tahrir [official website, English version] and an affiliated party, but that British intelligence officers refused to take part in the "political decision." Another e-mail indicated that Clarke pushed for a delay of the ban until proposed amendments to anti-terror legislation regarding groups involved in "justifying and glorifying violence" had been considered by the British Parliament. The leaks are expected to pose further problems for Blair as he pushes his Terrorism Bill proposal [text] through Parliament, and may also lead to an investigation within the civil service to uncover the source of the leaks. A spokesman from the civil rights group Liberty [advocacy website] praised Clarke for being able to "spot an illegality when it is waiting to happen." The Independent has more.