Harsh penalty sought for Al Qaeda suspects, trial adjourned to June 9

The Federal Supreme Court on Monday adjourned the case of nine Arabs on trial for forming a cell of the terror organisation Al Qaeda to June 9, when their lawyers will present their case.

The public prosecution asked the court for the maximum penalty for the accused.

Nine Arabs are on trial for allegedly establishing and running a terrorist cell linked to Al Qaeda. They are also charged with setting up and running the website of Sinam al-Islam forum, which is said to publish information about Al Qaeda with the intent of promoting its ideas, recruiting new members and sending them to carry out terrorist activities outside the UAE.

Eight suspects were present in court, while one, who is on the run, is being tried in absentia.

Medical reports submitted in court revealed that the suspects were not tortured while in custody and had no visible signs of abuse.

Seeking maximum penalty for the accused, Ahmed Al Dhanhani, a member of the public prosecution, said: “Terrorism has no religion or nation, but lives in the minds of those who kill; where the killer doesn’t know why he is carrying out the crime and the victim doesn’t have a reason to be brutally killed.”

He said terrorist groups spread ideas, provide finances and give weapons to its members to spread evil and bring down legitimate governments.

Quoting the Holy Quran, he said: “Indeed, the penalty for those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and strive upon earth (to cause) corruption is none but that they be killed or crucified or that their hands and feet be cut off from opposite sides or that they be exiled from the land. That is for them a disgrace in this world; and for them in the Hereafter is a great punishment (5:34).”

He claimed that the defendants confessed to the charges.

“During investigations, one of the defendants said he was influenced to go for jihad and had attended several classes in one week with other defendants and members of the cell.

“He also said that the main defendant was in contact with other members in Syria and had provided them with financial aid to fight the Syrian government troops.”

This defendant, Al Dhanhani claimed, confessed to have saved Dh500 to Dh1,500 of his monthly salary to send to Syria every month.

Al Dhanhani stressed that the evidence against the suspects is “clear”.

“The witnesses last week showed their findings of the illegal Al Qaeda cell formed in the UAE. They have shown clearly the role of each member. The reports from the electronic devices examined showed messages of the planned attack against a landmark in Dubai,” he said.

Evidence presented last week in court includes images, videos, audio clips and documents, which reportedly contains information relating to jihad and ways to make arms.

“All the defendants confessed to forming an Al Qaeda cell in the country and supporting the Al Nusra Front (an organisation accused of fighting the Syrian government). They raised funds for terrorist acts and convinced people to join the front. We ask that they receive the severest penalty of 25 years in jail,” said the prosecutor.

As per the new cyber laws, he said, the possible penalty for creating a terror-linked website is upto five years in prison and a fine of upto Dh2 million.

The presiding judge of the court, Judge Falah Al Hajiri, requested the doctor who examined one of the defendants and administered anti-depressants for his mental health to testify in court.

In the previous hearing, the suspects had denied the charges claiming that the files found in their possession “belonged to the prime suspect”, who is on the run. The 44-year-old prime suspect, they said, is the oldest among them, and “exploited them when he uploaded the files in their computers by claiming that his computer was not working”.

malzarooni@khaleejtimes.com