| Hopefully in front of a new judge... |
Two Muslim men accused in an FBI sting are facing new charges of helping a terrorist organisation a year after the judge in the case said there was no evidence of their links to extremist groups. A federal grand jury indicted Yassin Aref and Mohammed Hossain late on Thursday on nine new charges each, including conspiracy to provide material support to Pakistani-based Jaish-e-Mohammed, which the US government brands as a terrorist organisation. Aref, 35, is an Iraqi-born Kurdish refugee and imam at a mosque in Albany that was raided by the FBI in August 2004. Hossain, 50, of Yemen, owns an Albany pizzeria. They were to be arraigned on Friday before US magistrate David Homer. The indictments were based on new evidence presented by prosecutors who, since being sharply criticised by the judge a year ago, have travelled the globe to strengthen their case. Judge Homer last year said there was no evidence the two men had contact with a terrorist group and released them from jail, saying that the government's case was much weaker than it had first appeared. Those comments came as civil libertarians and anti-war protesters accused the US authorities of jumping to unfounded conclusions against Muslims since the attacks of 11 September 2001.