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Cleric faces trial on 16 charges

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Abu Hamza al-Mazri has been held in Belmarsh Prison since 2004.

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LONDON, England (CNN) -- Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Mazri is set to go trial in a British court Monday charged with 16 offences including soliciting to murder non-Muslims, stirring up racial hatred and possessing terrorist documents.

Hamza, the former imam of Finsbury Park mosque in north London, is due to appear at the Old Bailey in central London on the first day of his trial on Monday.

He faces 10 charges of soliciting murder under section four of the Offences Against the Person Act (1861).

In each, Egyptian-born Hamza is accused of soliciting others to murder non-believers at public meetings. Several of the charges specify that Hamza encouraged others to murder Jews.

He also faces four charges under the Public Order Act 1986 of "using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behavior with the intention of stirring up racial hatred."

A further charge says Hamza was in possession of eight video and audio recordings, which he intended to distribute to stir up racial hatred.

He faces one charge under section 58 of the Terrorism Act 2000 which relates to the alleged possession of a document which contained information "of a kind likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism."

Hamza, who has been held at Belmarsh high secuity prison since May 2004, is wanted in the United States.

Extradition proceedings against him have been halted until the offences charged in Britain have been dealt with.

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