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| Terror Networks |
| Austrailian Moslem Terrorist Flees Trial But Arrested in Lebanon |
| 2004-06-05 |
| From News.Com.Au, crediting The Sunday Telegraph Sydney-based terror suspect Saleh Jamal was trying to contact terrorist groups in the Middle East when he was arrested in Lebanon, authorities there claim. Jamal was acting on instructions from a Sydney-based man already under investigation, they say. Beirut prosecutors told The Sunday Telegraph Jamal, 29, had admitted links to al-Qaeda. He has been charged with planning terrorist attacks, being involved with al-Qaeda and possessing weapons - and faces 10 years’ jail in Lebanon. .... Jamal, who lived at Lakemba, is believed to have fled Sydney in March, leaving a wife and a young child. He had been facing trial for his alleged role in a shooting attack on the Lakemba police station in 1998. The trial transcript reveals Jamal upset just about everyone involved in the case, including the judge. But the jury was discharged when he convinced the court he was too sick to continue. The Sunday Telegraph has learnt that before he skipped bail, Jamal had been a target of the secretive NSW Crime Commission’s counter-terrorism unit. He arrived in Lebanon on a Jordanian passport. After being alerted by Australian authorities, internal security officials began intercepting his mobile-phone calls. Along with Haythem Melhem, 37, also facing terrorism charges, Jamal is alleged to have tried to make contact with Islamic fundamentalist groups. The recent arrests and charges have re-focused police attention on the Haldon St prayer hall at Lakemba. Jamal, Willie Brigitte - held by French authorities - and a third man, Mukhtar Mohamed, an Australian resident recently arrested in Nairobi, all prayed there, according to police. One security source said the prayer hall appeared to be a common link between some of the main targets. Before he found religion, Saleh Jamal was in a notorious Sydney gang and made his money from drug trafficking and car re-birthing. At that time, he was also known as Ray Jamal. He carried a 9mm pistol and was allegedly involved in at least three shootings. The Sunday Telegraph has been told he was also adept at obtaining fake identity papers and specialised in forging Greek birth certificates. .... |
| Posted by:Mike Sylwester |
| #1 Before he found "Drug trafficking and car re-birthing," you say? Maybe while he's inside some hopped up bunkmate will properly service Jamal's troublesome little tailpipe. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-06-05 2:39:01 PM |