(12/29/2004): THE WORLD Terror Case Against 7 Men Underway in Cambodia >From Associated Press
December 29, 2004 PHNOM PENH, Cambodia - Prosecutors opened their case Tuesday against seven men accused of plotting to bomb Western targets in Cambodia, but three of the key suspects - including Asia's top terrorism suspect, Hambali - were being tried in absentia. Prosecutor Yet Chakriya accused the seven defendants of "attempted premeditated murder with the goal of terrorism," which carries a sentence of life imprisonment. The suspects present at the trial were Esam Mohammed Khidr Ali of Egypt, Abdul Azi Haji Chiming and Mohammed Yalaludin Mading of Thailand and Sman Ismael of Cambodia. Being tried in absentia were Hambali, who is Indonesian, and two other foreigners identified only as Rousha Yasser and Ibrahim. Hambali was arrested in Thailand in August 2003 and is being held by U.S. officials at an undisclosed location. The four suspects present in court were arrested in May and June 2003 on suspicion of having ties to Jemaah Islamiah, which some experts describe as Al Qaeda's Southeast Asian arm. Cambodian police had broken up their Umm Qura group, which operated a Saudi-funded school outside Phnom Penh. Umm Qura, Chakriya said, was a terrorist cell associated with Jemaah Islamiah, and its "main role was to attack the United States and British embassies in Cambodia." Hambali, Jemaah Islamiah's suspected operations chief whose real name is Riduan Isamuddin, reportedly spent several months in Cambodia in 2002. He tried to use the country as a base from which to launch regional attacks, the prosecution said. Chakriya alleged that Hambali taught the Egyptian, Thai and Cambodian suspects "how to set off explosions" and that the men "closely cooperated in hiding Hambali." The four suspects in the courtroom denied the charges, saying they worked for a charity to help poor Cambodians. A prosecution witness, garage worker and taxi driver Thorn Lundi, told the court that Ibrahim had told him he planned to use a car bomb to attack the British Embassy. Abdul Azi Haji Chiming told the court that Hambali had left two bags with him while he traveled from Phnom Penh. One contained money, clothes and a computer CD. "When I played it, I saw Arabic songs, and another disc showed a car with four black boxes and an arrow sign saying 'bomb.' I did not know what it was about," he said. When Judge Ya Sokhan asked him if he had accompanied Hambali to the British Embassy, he replied: "I did not even know where the embassy is located." The judge is expected to deliver a verdict today. (http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-cambodia29dec29,1,38141 30,print.story) ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Make a clean sweep of pop-up ads. Yahoo! Companion Toolbar. Now with Pop-Up Blocker. Get it for free! http://us.click.yahoo.com/L5YrjA/eSIIAA/yQLSAA/TySplB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? Head on over to our discussion list, [EMAIL PROTECTED] -------------------------- Brooks Isoldi, editor [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.intellnet.org Post message: osint@yahoogroups.com Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] *** FAIR USE NOTICE. This message contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. OSINT, as a part of The Intelligence Network, is making it available without profit to OSINT YahooGroups members who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information in their efforts to advance the understanding of intelligence and law enforcement organizations, their activities, methods, techniques, human rights, civil liberties, social justice and other intelligence related issues, for non-profit research and educational purposes only. We believe that this constitutes a 'fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the U.S. Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use,' you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/osint/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
