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| Europe | |
| Al-Qaeda cell formally charged as terrorists in Spain | |
| 2004-11-17 | |
| Spain's top anti-terrorist court confirmed an indictment against 21 suspected members of a Spanish cell of Al Qaeda believed to have played a major role in the 11 September attacks on the United States. Spain's National Court rejected moves to dismiss charges against 21 of the 35 men indicted in the case, including several fugitives, the most notorious of whom is Osama bin Laden. The court found that the investigating judge, Baltasar Garzon, found "rational evidence of criminality that, in his judgment, attends each of the accused as members of the terrorist organization Al Qaeda in Spain."
In his indictment, Garzon concluded the accused used Spain as a base for preparing the U.S. attacks, as well as for obtaining funds and support for the organization. Garzon charged each of the defendants, a dozen of whom are behind bars in Spain, with a count of terrorist homicide for each person killed in the 11 September attacks in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. He also charged Bin Laden and other members of Al Qaeda with belonging to or collaborating with terrorists, tax evasion, forgery of a business document, fraud and weapons possession. In the course of his investigation, Garzon sought and obtained information from Germany, the United States, Indonesia, Greece, Great Britain, Belgium, Yemen, Syria, Sweden, Turkey, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. | |
| Posted by:Seafarious |