Education agency Select Education has stood by its decision to allow the sister of a British suicide bomber to continue as one of its supply teachers despite allegations she made comments to pupils supporting Osama bin Laden.

Parveen Sharif is the sister of Omar Sharif, who took part in a suicide bomb attack on Mike’s Bar in Tel Aviv in April 2003, killing three people and injuring 65 others.

An Old Bailey jury acquitted Parveen and her other brother Zahid of failing to tell police about Omar’s planned suicide mission.

But it emerged that Ms Sharif had been banned from two schools in Derbyshire, where she allegedly made the inflammatory comments supporting al-Qaeda.

The schools complained to Select Education, which allowed her to continue teaching at other schools on the condition that she did not make the comments again.

The Old Bailey jury was not told about the allegations after the judge ruled that the children who complained to police about Ms Sharif’s alleged comments were unreliable witnesses. Ms Sharif denied the claims.

But a Select spokesman said it received two reports that Ms Sharif made comments about the 9/11 attacks that were considered inappropriate.

The reports were both made in the week commencing 15 October 2001, and Select said it discussed the matter with Ms Sharif immediately.

She accepted that the comments were inappropriate and undertook not to repeat them, said Select.

“Select Education was forced to conclude that her comments, although out of line with the views of the majority, did not constitute a valid reason to remove her from the company’s register of teachers – particularly as she agreed not to comment on such matters in schools in future,” said the spokesman.

“It is the understanding of Select Education that had Parveen Sharif been employed directly by a school, her comments would not have constituted a reason for dismissal.”