| Ten suspected Islamist militants have been ordered to stand trial in France in connection with a failed plot to bomb a Christmas market in the eastern city of Strasbourg in 2000, court sources said Monday. The trial of the so-called "Frankfurt group", who stand accused of criminal association related to a terrorist group, was expected to begin in a Paris criminal court in October. The suspects face a maximum of 10 years in prison. French investigators believe that they thwarted what could have been a massive attack with just a few days to spare. The 10 suspects are accused of helping to plan the attack on the Strasbourg market in December 2000, a crowded venue throughout the Christmas holiday period. Among those due to stand trial is the suspected mastermind of the attack, Algerian national Mohamed Bensakhria, who was arrested in Spain in June 2001 and later extradited to France. Investigators say Bensakhria travelled to Strasbourg on December 10, 2000 - as the market was being set up - to research the location for the alleged bomb attack. French police began investigating the matter after German police arrested several suspects. Four members of the "Frankfurt group" were convicted in a Frankfurt court in March 2003 in connection with the plot, and sentenced to between 10 and 12 years in prison. |