MI6 changes al-Qaeda bomb info to cake recipes

He has been called the 'Bin Laden of the internet' for his proficiency at churning out slick, English-language jihadist propaganda, but it seems that Anwar al-Awlaki is not immune to that modern online scourge, the hacker, after it emerged that British cyber agents replaced a piece on how to make bombs in one of his magazines with instructions for baking cup cakes.

Inspire, one of a number of online publications produced by al-Awlaki, was targeted by MI6 and GCHQ hackers when it was first published last year, in an attempting to disrupt al-Qaeda's efforts to support 'lone-wolf' terrorists.

The 67-page online magazine caters to the needs of budding Islamic fundamentalists. The Telegraph reports that both American and British security agencies were planning to disrupt the magazine when it was first published in June 2010. The Pentagon, however, was reined in by the CIA, which believed that the publication was a critical source of intelligence.

Britain had no such qualms and launched a successful attack. Clearly believing humour is one of the best weapons to use against po-faced Islamist terrorists, the British hackers replaced an article entitled 'Make a bomb in the Kitchen of your Mom' with code taken from a web page for the Ellen DeGeneres chatshow entitled 'The Best Cupcakes in America'.

Readers hoping to learn how to use match heads, lightbulbs and a timer to create a 'lethal pipe bomb' were instead cautioned, "warning, sugar rush ahead!" as they discovered the secrets behind the Rocky Road Cupcake.

Articles written by Osama bin Laden and his second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahiri, as well as a piece called 'What to expect in Jihad,' were also removed in the cyber attack.

However al-Awlaki's organisation, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, was able to reissue the magazine two weeks later, and has subsequently produced four further editions.

Inspire is not Al-Awlaki's only al-Qaeda publication. He is said to be behind Al-Shamikha - loosely translated as 'The Majestic Woman' – a 31-page magazine which appeals to the female jihadist by fusing beauty tips with Islamic fundamentalist teachings. ·