LONDON, Dec. 9 (UPI) -- Michael Adebolajo, accused of killing British soldier Lee Rigby in London in May, testified Monday he considers al-Qaida his "brothers."
Adebolajo, 28, and Michael Adelowale, 22, are accused of killing Rigby by running him down with their car, then hacking him to death with knives and a meat cleaver outside London's Woolrich Barracks.
Asked in court about al-Qaida by his attorney, Adebolajo, a British citizen, replied, "al-Qaida I consider to be mujahedin," a reference to Muslims who serve Allah. "I love them. They're my brothers. I have never met them. I consider them my brothers in Islam. Mujahedin are the army of Allah. I am a soldier and this is war."
He added he had no regrets over the killing because he was obeying his God, and prayed with Adelowale that they find a soldier to kill and not a civilian.
The court also heard Adebolajo has Christian parents and six children.
He suggested, during testimony, that he be ransomed after the case is concluded, saying, "As an enemy soldier, I believe I should be ransomed to my ... brothers, or I should be set free, or I should be killed."
