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| Europe |
| GICM suspects face 10 years in jail |
| 2005-12-09 |
| The federal public prosecutor demanded in Brussels Court on Thursday the maximum sentence of 10 years jail for the alleged leaders of the Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group (GICM). The two main suspects were identified as Abdelkader Hakimi and Lahoussine el Haski, newspaper 'Het Laatste Nieuws' reported. The prosecutor also demanded eight years jail for two other suspects who allegedly held leading roles within GICM. Seven suspects accused of being involved in the activities of the terror network face jail terms of four to five years. Two men face a jail term of three months for entering Belgium illegally. The sentencing demand came after the prosecutor said on Wednesday that the group blamed for the Madrid and Casablanca bombings was led from Brussels, where Islamic militants provided it with financial and logistical support. Suspected GICM members have been arrested in France and the Canary Islands over the attacks, which killed more than 200 people. This is the first time a prosecutor has spoken of the group's command structure and located its headquarters in Belgium, Reuters reported. Prosecutor Bernard Michel said four of the 13 suspects led the group's European operations from Belgium, alleging they organised preparatory meetings ahead of the Madrid bombings and provided a safe house to one of the culprits. Defence lawyers have claimed the defendants were friends of the bombing suspects and were not aware of their real motives. The defence will start officially presenting its case from Monday next week. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |