Germany releases Mounir El Motassadeq

Sir Sirius · Post by **Sir Sirius** » 2004-04-07 10:30am

CNN wrote:Hamburg court frees 9/11 suspect

Wednesday, April 7, 2004 Posted: 9:01 AM EDT (1301 GMT)
[img=right]http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/2004/WORLD/europ ... ce2.ap.jpg[/img]

HAMBURG, Germany (CNN) -- The only suspect convicted in the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States has been released from a German jail, pending a retrial.

A Hamburg court Wednesday ordered the release of Mounir El Motassadeq, 30, after he was granted a mistrial last month.

El Motassadeq was released on condition he remain in Hamburg and report to police twice a week.

A new trial is scheduled to begin June 16.

In a statement, the court said El Motassadeq "is no longer an urgent suspect in the charge of accomplice to murder, but only as a member of a terrorist organization."

The Moroccan had been serving a maximum 15-year prison term in Hamburg since a court convicted him in February 2003.

However, an appeals court ruled March 4 that El Motassadeq was denied a fair trial because the U.S. government refused access to a key witness in its custody.

El Motassadeq consistently denied the charges during his three-and-a-half-month trial.

He was found guilty of providing logistical support for the Hamburg al Qaeda cell that included lead September 11 hijacker Mohamed Atta, who piloted one of the two airliners that crashed into the World Trade Center in New York.

His lawyers asked the appeals court for acquittal or a retrial, alleging their client was wrongly convicted because the United States refused to allow court testimony by Ramzi Binalshibh, thought to be the Hamburg cell's key contact with al Qaeda.

Binalshibh was captured in Pakistan on the first anniversary of the September 11 attacks and is in U.S. custody.

Rather surprising really, I would have thought that he would be held in custody until the new trial.

Nathan F · Post by **Nathan F** » 2004-04-07 10:31am

I know that you are innocent until proven guilty, but this most definitely was a bad idea.

Dahak · Post by **Dahak** » 2004-04-07 11:58am

This is also a big "FUCK YOU!" from the court towards the secret services and our Home secretary for refusing to help the court and give them the relevant data.

KrauserKrauser · Post by **KrauserKrauser** » 2004-04-07 12:20pm

So when we find him dead fighting our troops in Iraq, will anyone be surprised?

Illuminatus Primus · Post by **Illuminatus Primus** » 2004-04-07 06:43pm

The CIA should just take him into some alley somewhere, put him onto his knees, and put a 9 mm Parabellum in his forehead. If leaders with "socalist tendencies" didn't get a trial, why should this scum?

salm · Post by **salm** » 2004-04-07 06:51pm

Illuminatus Primus wrote:The CIA should just take him into some alley somewhere, put him onto his knees, and put a 9 mm Parabellum in his forehead. If leaders with "socalist tendencies" didn't get a trial, why should this scum?

no thanks. keep your patriot acts in the US.

HemlockGrey · Post by **HemlockGrey** » 2004-04-07 06:55pm

Dude, he's already been convicted.

Rye · Post by **Rye** » 2004-04-07 06:59pm

KrauserKrauser wrote:So when we find him dead fighting our troops in Iraq, will anyone be surprised?

Yes actually, since he's not allowed to leave hamburg and has no passport. Be a bit of a trek.

Frank Hipper · Post by **Frank Hipper** » 2004-04-07 07:12pm

There's going to be fucking hell if he runs....
Pretty fucked up to keep a "key witness" out of thing, I have to say. Those responsible for that are the ones to lay the blame on if he does run.

salm · Post by **salm** » 2004-04-07 07:14pm

Dude, he's already been convicted.

so what? the conviction has been overruled.

MKSheppard · Post by **MKSheppard** » 2004-04-07 07:54pm

Fucking hell, Paging John Clark, Paging John Clark

Illuminatus Primus · Post by **Illuminatus Primus** » 2004-04-07 09:02pm

salm wrote:no thanks. keep your patriot acts in the US.

You think your country--or any country--is above eliminating their enemies?

Howedar · Post by **Howedar** » 2004-04-07 09:05pm

MKSheppard wrote:Fucking hell, Paging John Clark, Paging John Clark

Good call.

Rogue 9 · Post by **Rogue 9** » 2004-04-07 09:06pm

Howedar wrote:
MKSheppard wrote:Fucking hell, Paging John Clark, Paging John Clark
Good call.

Seconded. (And no, not that John Clark!)

salm · Post by **salm** » 2004-04-08 06:31am

Illuminatus Primus wrote:
salm wrote:no thanks. keep your patriot acts in the US.
You think your country--or any country--is above eliminating their enemies?

false dilemma. an person is not either a friend or an enemy. a person can be an enemy who has been proven to have commited crimes. a person can also be an enemy who hasn´t been proven to have commited crimes. in the latter case i clearly think that my country is, and any other country should be, above eleminiating them.
in this case the supposed criminal was released because of the lack of sufficient evidence for this particular crime (supporting the terrorists who flew the planes into the wtc and by that supporting them of murdering 3000 people.).
apparantly there was evidence held back by german secret service as well as by the USA. ther reasons for that i don´t know.
his next trial on which they probably will get him convicted is going to be for "being a member of a criminal organization" with the max sentance being 5 years in prison. that´s not nearly as good as the 15 years he would have got for supporting murder but i guess better than nothing.

LordShaithis · Post by **LordShaithis** » 2004-04-08 07:18am

This guy is required to report to the police at regular intervals. How hard could it be for someone to tail him as he leaves the station, find out where he's staying, then break in and pop him that night? Come on CIA, where are you when we need you?