Sheikh Hamid Abdullah Al-Ali, former secretary-general of the Salafi Movement, was escorted to the Court of Cassation Tuesday by 11 armed men from the Special Forces to look into a petition he has filed to cancel the verdict which has been issued against him by a lower court. Al-Ali was convicted of criticizing — during a Friday sermon — HH the Amir's right to give instructions to foreign armies to launch a war on Iraq from Kuwaiti territories, defaming HH the Amir in public by describing Arab leaders as 'traitors and failures,' holding a public seminar — without permission — to defame brotherly and friendly states and founding an Internet site explaining how to make explosives.On June 19, 2004, the Criminal Court sentenced Al-Ali to two years in jail and ordered him to sign a pledge of good conduct for three years and pay KD 1,000 to suspend the sentence. The verdict was upheld by the Court of Appeals on Nov 28, 2004. During the session, lawyer for Ali, attorney Osama Al-Monawer, said according to Item No. 109 of the Kuwaiti law, a case can only be filed against a person through a complainant. He added none of the Arab leaders had filed a complaint against his client. "More than what Sheikh Hamid Al-Ali has said is heard in more than 55 Islamic states, however, no one has been referred to the Public Prosecution," the lawyer added.