France jails Islamists for Eiffel Tower terror plot
_ G O D _
France jails Islamists for Eiffel Tower terror plot
by John Lichfield
http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/article1018550.ece
Paris
Twenty five people were convicted of plotting Islamist
terrorist attacks in France, including attack on the Eiffel
Tower.
The leaders of a so-called "Chechen" network among
Algerian radicals were given jail sentences of nine and
ten years. Others were given much lighter sentences than
the prosecution had requested. Two people were acquitted.
A seven-week trial which ended on 12 May uncovered
many holes in the prosecution case and failed to establish
exactly what kind of terrorist attack was planned.
There were accusations that some form of gas attack,
possibly using ricin, was contemplated and that targets
included the Eiffel Tower, the commercial centre at Les
Halles in central Paris and the Russian embassy in Paris.
However, the prosecution produced no evidence that the
plot ever proceeded beyond a vague planning stage.
The court, in its delayed judgement yesterday, gave tough
sentences to four people accused of being the ringleaders
of the group. Merouane Benhamed and Menad Benchellali
were convicted of "association with terrorists" and given
maximum 10- year sentences. Said Arif and Nourredine
Merabet received nine-year jail terms.
Benhamed, 33, was accused of being the "orchestra director" and "promoter" of the
plot. Benchellali, 32, was accused of "manipulating chemicals".
Other defendants, including Benchellali's father, mother and brother were accused of
playing relatively minor roles in the plot and received light or suspended sentences.
The main defendants were former members of the Algerian Islamist organisation, the
Groupe Islamique Arme (GIA).
Others, recruited in the Paris and Lyons suburbs had been sent to training camps in
the Caucasus but had never fought in the Chechen civil war. The group was nonetheless
named the "Chechen" network by French anti-terrorist investigators.
After the verdicts and sentences were delivered, Benhamed's lawyer, Isabelle
Coutant-Peyre, said the defendants were "accused of being Muslims" and the sentences
had been dictated by the United States, Algeria and Russia. France had been "told to
condemn Muslims who annoy these powers", she said. "This was a truly political
verdict".
Mme Coutant-Peyre is the wife of the 1970s terrorist leader Carlos the Jackal. She
married him after he was convicted and jailed in France.
Another defence lawyer, Sebastien Bono, said the trial had partly been based on the
confession of his client, Arif, which he said had been obtained under torture in
Syria. He denounced the "extraordinary hypocrisy" of the court for accepting such
evidence.
The public prosecutor was unable to provide proof that a chemical attack was planned,
although police seized a protective suit, and chemicals including the highly toxic
substance, ricin. The so-called Chechen network was dismantled in two series of
raids.
In December 2002, police stormed two apartments in the northern Paris suburbs of La
Courneuve and Romainville. They found gas canisters, fuses, chemicals and a
protective suit against chemical attacks.
During a second series of arrests, in January 2004 in Venissieux, near Lyons,
investigators found chemical products, including ricin.
Twenty five people were convicted by a French court yesterday of plotting Islamist
terrorist attacks in France in 2001-02, including possibly a gas attack on the Eiffel
Tower.
The leaders of a so-called "Chechen" network among Algerian radicals were given jail
sentences of nine and ten years. Others were given much lighter sentences than the
prosecution had requested. Two people were acquitted.
A seven-week trial which ended on 12 May uncovered many holes in the prosecution case
and failed to establish exactly what kind of terrorist attack was planned.
There were accusations that some form of gas attack, possibly using ricin, was
contemplated and that targets included the Eiffel Tower, the commercial centre at Les
Halles in central Paris and the Russian embassy in Paris.
However, the prosecution produced no evidence that the plot ever proceeded beyond a
vague planning stage.
The court, in its delayed judgement yesterday, gave tough sentences to four people
accused of being the ringleaders of the group. Merouane Benhamed and Menad
Benchellali were convicted of "association with terrorists" and given maximum 10-
year sentences. Said Arif and Nourredine Merabet received nine-year jail terms.
Benhamed, 33, was accused of being the "orchestra director" and "promoter" of the
plot. Benchellali, 32, was accused of "manipulating chemicals".
Other defendants, including Benchellali's father, mother and brother were accused of
playing relatively minor roles in the plot and received light or suspended sentences.
The main defendants were former members of the Algerian Islamist organisation, the
Groupe Islamique Arme (GIA).
Others, recruited in the Paris and Lyons suburbs had been sent to training camps in
the Caucasus but had never fought in the Chechen civil war. The group was nonetheless
named the "Chechen" network by French anti-terrorist investigators.
After the verdicts and sentences were delivered, Benhamed's lawyer, Isabelle
Coutant-Peyre, said the defendants were "accused of being Muslims" and the sentences
had been dictated by the United States, Algeria and Russia. France had been "told to
condemn Muslims who annoy these powers", she said. "This was a truly political
verdict".
Mme Coutant-Peyre is the wife of the 1970s terrorist leader Carlos the Jackal. She
married him after he was convicted and jailed in France.
Another defence lawyer, Sebastien Bono, said the trial had partly been based on the
confession of his client, Arif, which he said had been obtained under torture in
Syria. He denounced the "extraordinary hypocrisy" of the court for accepting such
evidence.
The public prosecutor was unable to provide proof that a chemical attack was planned,
although police seized a protective suit, and chemicals including the highly toxic
substance, ricin. The so-called Chechen network was dismantled in two series of
raids.
In December 2002, police stormed two apartments in the northern Paris suburbs of La
Courneuve and Romainville. They found gas canisters, fuses, chemicals and a
protective suit against chemical attacks.
During a second series of arrests, in January 2004 in Venissieux, near Lyons,
investigators found chemical products, including ricin
--
_____________________________________________________
I intend to last long enough to put out of business all COck-suckers
and other beneficiaries of the institutionalized slavery and genocide.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"The army that will defeat terrorism doesn't wear uniforms, or drive
Humvees, or calls in air-strikes. It doesn't have a high command, or
high security, or a high budget. The army that can defeat terrorism
does battle quietly, clearing minefields and vaccinating children. It
undermines military dictatorships and military lobbyists. It subverts
sweatshops and special interests.Where people feel powerless, it
helps them organize for change, and where people are powerful, it
reminds them of their responsibility." ~~~~ Author Unknown ~~~~
___________________________________________________
--