AMSTERDAM: Fourteen men accused of belonging to a radical Muslim terrorist group, including the convicted killer of filmmaker Theo van Gogh, go on trial today at Amsterdamâs high security court. Although the Netherlands has not been hit by a terrorist attack since the late 1970s, ...
| ... until Mr. van Gogh was whacked ... |
Prosecutor Koos Plooy has admitted that they have insufficient evidence to proceed with charges the group was planning specific attacks, but said that its âradical coreâ had a âcommon aim to strike fear in the hearts of the Dutch and disrupt the democratic structuresâ through attacks. The prosecution alleges that 27-year-old Mohammed Bouyeri, convicted to life in prison for murdering Van Gogh, was a leading member of the Hofstad group. Despite the fact that he already has the maximum sentence given in the Netherlands, the prosecution also wants Bouyeri to appear in the Hofstad group trial because if his alleged key role.