A Moroccan prosecutor on Thursday charged 17 Islamists whom police rounded up in Rabat and Casablanca this month as alleged members of a terrorist network being set up with suspected Al-Qaeda links. Hussein Houdaya, one of the kingdom's leading anti-terrorist attorneys, initially checked the identities of the 18 men and then told them of the various charges against them at a court in Sale, a judicial source said. Police had initially announced 17 arrests that started on November 11, but said the net had been widened when they dismantled a major terrorist cell and prosecuting authorities repeatedly extended the period of detention.Police detectives showed up at the court openly carrying sealed bags of evidence against the men, who were brought from Casablanca to Sale in two armoured police buses. Details of the charges were not made public but a judicial source said the suspects were presented to an examining magistrate probing the case immediately after the hearing. Announcing the arrests last Sunday, police said the network was "linked to the radical Islamic movement having connections with small groups at the Iraqi border and maintaining close ties with senior members of the Al-Qaeda organization."
The detention period prior to Thursday's court appearance had been extended for 96 hours twice. Defense lawyer, Abdel-Fattah Zahrach, said the aim was to help police "complete their inquries." The suspects included two Moroccans formerly detained by the UnitedStates at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, Brahim Benchekroun and Mohammad Mazouz. The authorities say the masterminds behind the alleged terrorist cell were Khalid Azig and Mohammad Rha. Moroccan security services said they had been interested since March in the activities of Moroccan national Azig, a former theology student in Syria who made repeated trips between there and Turkey. Azig returned to Morocco in June and was joined by Reha, who has Belgian nationality, on September 29, in order to recruit members for a terrorist cell, according to a statement from the security services.