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Al-Ahram Weekly 20 - 26 April 2000 Issue No. 478 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 20 - 26 April 2000 Issue No. 478
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Heritage Features Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Clamp down on Bin Laden band
By Lola KeilaniA military trial of 28 suspected Islamists accused of plotting attacks against tourists on millennium celebrations, scheduled to begin today, is viewed here as a strong warning to militant groups.
Military Prosecutor General Mahmoud Obiedat characterised the 28 militants scheduled to go on trial as "one of the most dangerous terrorist groups ever uncovered in Jordan. This group is linked to the Al-Qa'ida (The Base) organisation which is a member of the International Islamic Front for Struggle Against Jews and Crusaders led by bin Laden," he said.
Osama bin Laden, a Saudi-born dissident who is based in Afghanistan is alleged to run this front which is an umbrella organisation for several militant groups active in a number of Muslim countries.
Charged with planning terrorist attacks on millennium celebrations, the accused are the sixth group of Islamists to go on trial in Jordan during the last 16 years. In all previous trials, the suspects were accused of using violence to try to establish a state based on Shari'a.
The Jordanian branch of Al-Qa'ida was allegedly formed in 1995 by a 36-year-old Jordanian, Khouder Abu Hoshar, who recruited Islamists trained in the use of arms and explosives in Syria, Lebanon and Afghanistan.
Of the 28 group members who were charged with plotting terrorist acts, 13 are being tried in absentia. Of these, 13 are Jordanians of Palestinian origin, one is an Iraqi and the other an Algerian.
If convicted the suspects face the possibility of stiff prison sentences or the death penalty.
One of the Jordanians on trial, Khalil Ziad Deek, who also holds a US passport, was extradited from Pakistan but is not expected to appear in court today. According to US press reports, Deek was a bin Laden operative but is now cooperating with the US Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The Afghanistan-based bin Laden is wanted in the United States in connection with the 1998 bombings of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in which 224 people were killed.
Political observers had predicted that Jordan would be targeted by international Islamist groups following its expulsion of Hamas activists last November. "Following the crack down on Hamas offices and the expulsion of its top leaders, the harmonious relationship between the Hashemite regime and Islamic movements no longer exists. Therefore militants believe that Jordan declared war on Islamist movements who assert that they are only responding [to the state's actions]," said a political observer who asked not to be identified.
Militant Islamist groups condemn the country's largest political Islamic group, the Muslim Brotherhood, for adopting a gradual, conciliatory strategy in its relationship with the ruling Hashemites.
