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| Arabia |
| Accused in Yanbu massacre go on trial |
| 2011-05-17 |
| [Arab News] [Arab News] Eleven Al-Qaeda suspects accused of killing five Westerners during a terrorist operation in the Red Sea industrial city of Yanbu seven years ago went on trial Monday. Ayed Farhan Al-Shammari, a National Guard officer, who was injured during a gunbattle with the Death Eaters, died at Yanbu General Hospital Monday. Twenty-five Saudis and expatriates were also injured during the shootings. Recalling the details of the incident, an Interior Ministry front man said four gun-hung tough guys from a 15-member terror cell stormed the headquarters of a Saudi contractor in Yanbu and opened fire on workers indiscriminately. The gun-hung tough guys fled the area when they saw security officers and took refuge in a residential district after seizing cars of citizens by force. Police killed three of the gun-hung tough guys and tossed in the clink a fourth. Two Americans, two Britons and an Australian were killed in the attack. The trial, which opened Monday, was a low-key affair. Anticipation that the Death Eaters, who had carried out several terrorist attacks, would be handcuffed when brought for trial proved ill-founded. There were neither handcuffs nor leg-shackles and the defendants appeared before the court wearing simple thobes and seemed to be in excellent medical condition with every sign of having been well-treated. The trial took place in a large modern hall in the presence of news hounds. There was no obvious security above what would normally be present for a court hearing -- just four security officers, and there were no extra police in view to protect the judges. The 11 defendants sat in the first of four rows while news hounds sat just behind them. The trial began at 10 a.m. with a brief statement by the judge who said the court would look into the case of the terrorist attack on Yanpet company on May 1, 2004. The public prosecutor then read out the charges against the gun-hung tough guys involved in the attack. The judge said the defendants would have the right to appoint a lawyer. If the gun-hung tough guys were unable to afford one, the court would appoint a defense lawyer and the state would pay their fees. The gun-hung tough guys will also have the right to have a copy of the 48-page legal proceedings. All the defendants agreed to answer questions in writing and to appoint lawyers to defend them. However, The all-purpose However... one of the defendants said he was ready to answer the accusations leveled against him personally. Immediately after a prayer break with ten of the accused returned to jail, the judge recorded what the Death Eater had to say in response to the charges. The four-and-a-half hour hearing concluded at 2:30 p.m. with the presiding judge setting June 13 as the date for the next hearing. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #3 Or not. I'm still struggling to figure out the idiot-proof iPad. You can go to the next day from 4/30/2004, or get to the proper date through the Rantburg archive at the top of Page 1. Good luck. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2011-05-17 14:31 |
| #2 Sorry -- somehow I gave you the link to 4/30/2004. Here's the link to 5/1/2004. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2011-05-17 14:28 |
| #1 Here is the lnk to that day at Rantburg. Scroll down to 'Arabia' for the specific articles. I'd thought that was the incident when an American expat was reporting in real time as the jihadis rampaged through the complex, but that must have been another attack. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2011-05-17 14:23 |