A trustee at one of London's best-known mosques is a senior member of 'terrorist organisation' Hamas's political wing, it was reported this morning.

Mohammed Sawalha holds the role of trustee at Finsbury Park Mosque in north London, which was formerly linked to extremism but which insists it has since undergone an 'complete overhaul'.

It emerged today that Mr Sawalha represented the militant Palestinian organisation Hamas at recent talks in Moscow.

Mohammed Sawalha, a trustee at Finsbury Park mosque, was part of a Hamas delegation

Sawalha, who lives in London, was appointed a trustee of the mosque in 2010 and is legally responsible for overseeing the mosque's management, The Times reported today.

He was one of five senior figures from the Islamist organisation who were sent to Moscow in September, where they met Russia's deputy foreign minister Mikhail Bogdanov and other Kremlin officials.

One of the group told Middle East news website Al-Monitor that the meeting between Hamas and top Russian officials was 'an important milestone'

The delegate added: 'Russia is a great power, at a time when the United States wants Hamas to be labeled as a terrorist group and be isolated.'

The UK only designates Hamas's military wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, as a terrorist organisation, not the political wing, meaning Mr Sawalha has broken no rules.

But his prominence at the north London mosque may unsettle some who are concerned about the organisation's reach in the UK.

Mr Sawalha met Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn during a visit to the mosque in November 2015

Mr Sawalha is part of the political wing of the militant Islamist organisation based in Palestine

The mosque has been visited many times by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who was previously criticised for describing Hamas as 'friends'. He later said he regretted using the term.

Who are Hamas? Hamas is an acronym for the Islamic Resistance Movement and began in 1987 against the Israeli occupation of Palestine. Originally an armed group, since 2005 it has been part of the Palestinian political process. It seized Gaza from rival group Fatah in a near civil war in 2007 and the two factions have been at loggerheads ever since. Hamas is blacklisted as a terrorist organisation by the United States and the European Union, but the UK has banned only its military wing. Hamas fighters in Gaza city in 2007 Advertisement

A man died and 11 people were injured when a van drove onto the pavement outside the mosque in June in a suspected right-wing terror attack.

The mosque was unavailable for comment this morning, but its website states: 'Unfortunately the Finsbury Park Mosque was under the forceful control of some extremists linked to Abu Hamza Al-Misri from 1997 to 2005.

'This was a dark period for the mosque as these individuals, unrepresented of mainstream Islam, used the premises to promote their ideology of hate, confrontation and disunity.

'They were ousted by the community in February 2005 in partnership with the authorities, but some sections of the media continue to falsely link the new management of the mosque to extremists.

'Since 2005, and with the support of the local Muslim community, there has been a complete overhaul of the mosque's leadership, comprising of a new board of trustees, management team, Imams, and a new ethos.

'Consequently, attendance has greatly increased and the range of services has steadily expanded. Today, the mosque's prayer halls are packed with worshippers from various ethnic backgrounds.'