One of the two suspected Islamists accused of hacking a British soldier to death in London was a convert who regularly attended sermons by banned Islamist preacher Omar Bakri, an associate of Bakri said on Thursday.

Anjem Choudary -- the former leader of Bakri's Al-Muhajiroun group in Britain, which was proscribed under anti-terror laws -- told AFP that the man filmed with a bloodied meat cleaver at the site of Wednesday's murder was called Mujahid.

Known as Michael before he converted to Islam in 2003, Choudary said Mujahid was a "peaceful chap" before he drifted off the radical scene three years ago. He was from a Nigerian family.

"I knew one of them, Mujahid," Choudary told AFP in a telephone interview.

"He used to attend some of our activities over the years. Very peaceful chap actually, not violent at all, very pleasant.

"We lost any kind of contact with him about three years ago. So I don't know what he has been up to but it was a bit of a shock what we saw yesterday.

"He wasn't a member (of Al-Muhajiroun), he was not intellectually affiliated. I wouldn't say he was a member but he attended some of the activities, demonstrations, processions, talks.

"Even Sheikh Omar Bakri Muhammad, who's now in Lebanon, remembered him. So he was definitely there prior to 2005 and I think he disappeared off the scene probably 2009, 2010."

A notorious figure in Britain, Bakri left London for Lebanon in 2005 and was swiftly told he would not be allowed back in.

Asked about the other suspect, Choudary said: "I couldn't recognise him."

Both alleged attackers were shot by armed police officers. They are under armed guard in separate hospitals.

It was widely reported that the men were known to the security services, which Choudary said would be no surprise.

In his diatribe before onlookers, Mujahid spoke about Prime Minister David Cameron and pulling British troops out of foreign countries.

Choudary said Mujahid was "a normal guy really, he used to propagate Islam, concerned about foreign policy".

"From his own message, there's a direct link between the British foreign policy and what took place yesterday. He mentioned the British troops in Afghanistan and talked about Cameron.

"He had a chance to attack other people but he only attacked that individual.

"Over the years, there has been more and more screw-turning by the British government, more and more oppression against the Muslim community. They've tried to silence organisations like ourselves by banning them and proscribing them.

"Therefore there's much less avenue to express yourself ideologically and politically and therefore it's no surprise that people possibly -- and I don't know this for sure -- go onto the Internet and come across other organisations who don't believe in a covenant of security at all. People like Al-Qaeda."

Asked if he condemned Mujahid's actions, he replied: "I condemn the British government. I think the ones who radicalised him, the ones who put people like that in that position, are the British by their very brutal foreign policy... Now they have a reaction."

Soldier killed in London had served in Afghanistan
London (AFP) May 23, 2013 - The British soldier butchered on the streets of London by two suspected Islamists was a 25-year-old father who had fought the Taliban in Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence said on Thursday.

Officials named the victim of Wednesday's bloody attack near a military barracks in Woolwich as Lee Rigby, a machine-gunner with 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers.

A lifelong Manchester United fan and a drummer in the military band, he had also served in Germany and Cyprus but was at the time of his death working in London.

"An extremely popular and witty soldier, Drummer Rigby was a larger than life personality within the Corps of Drums and was well known, liked and respected across the Second Fusiliers," said a statement from the Ministry of Defence.

"A loving father to his son Jack, aged two years, he will be sorely missed by all who knew him. The regiment's thoughts and prayers are with his family during this extremely difficult time."

His commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Jim Taylor, said Rigby was a "true warrior", while other colleagues paid tribute to his bubbly personality and sense of humour.

"Drummer Rigby, or 'Riggers', as he was known within the platoon, was a cheeky and humorous man, always there with a joke to brighten the mood," said Captain Alan Williamson, adjutant to the Second Fusiliers.

He added: "Once a Fusilier, always a Fusilier."

Rigby was born in July 1987 in Manchester in northwest England. He joined the army in 2006 and had his first posting at the British military base in Cyprus.

In 2009 he was deployed to Helmand province in Afghanistan, where he operated machine guns and anti-tank missiles as part of NATO-led forces fighting the Taliban.

He later served at the Celle military base in Germany, and in 2011 took up a recruiting post in London, where he also worked at regimental headquarters at the Tower of London.

Rigby was hacked to death in a brazen attack in broad daylight by two men wielding knives and a cleaver who later launched into a tirade against the British government and its military involvement in Muslim countries.

The post-mortem examination was due to take place on Thursday.

His assailants, believed to be Britons of Nigerian descent, were injured in police fire and taken to separate hospitals, where they spent the night under armed guard.

Prime Minister David Cameron had earlier offered his condolences to Rigby's family, saying: "We have lost a brave soldier."