On Monday, Amman court sentenced a Jordanian-American to death for plotting attacks during the millennium celebrations. Raed Hijazi, a 32-year-old of Palestinian origin, was cleared of ties to suspected terror mastermind Osama Bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.
Hijazi was sentenced to death in absentia in September 2000 during the trial of 28 Islamists accused of planning bomb attacks on Christian, Jewish and US targets in Jordan. Eight members of the group were condemned to death, although the sentence of two of them was later commuted to life imprisonment, while 14 were handed various prison terms and six acquitted.
But the court acquitted all the defendants of membership in Al-Qaeda network of bin Laden, the prime suspect in the September 11 attacks on the United States.
In line with Jordanian law, Hijazi faced a new trial -- on the same charges -- after his arrest in Syria in November 2000 and his extradition to the kingdom. The new trial opened in May 2001. Hijazi denied any links with bin Laden.
He told the court that he considered the verdict an attempt to gain more assistance from Washington. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
