(AKI) - Three suspected jihadist terrorists accused of sending fighters to Afghanistan and Iraq on Tuesday denied all accusations against them when they appeared before a judge in the northern city of Bologna.
The three North African immigrants rejected evidence against them gathered from police phone taps, claiming the taped phone conversations had been taken out of context.
The suspects also said money collected at local mosques (zakat or alms in Arabic) had only been used for the mosque and to help fellow Muslims facing economic hardship - not to fund Jihad (holy war) as investigators allege.
| Just some alms for the Widows Ammunition Fund ... |
Some of the zakat had been given to Tunisian national Khalil Jarraya, who was unemployed and in Italy illegally as he did not have a valid permit of stay, the suspects said. Investigators claim Jarraya was the ringleader of the alleged international terrorist cell, five of whose members were arrested on Saturday.
Investigators also allege that the suspected cell members sent money to Bosnian groups with links to terror organisations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Jarraya was known as the 'colonel' due to his experience in fighting in the Bosnian civil war of 1992-1995,
Police arrested Jarraya, three other Tunisians and a Moroccan during operations in Bologna and the nearby towns of Imola and Faenza that broke up the alleged cell. A sixth suspect is still at large. He avoided arrest because he had returned to his home country for personal reasons.
| Like, for example, to avoid being arrested ... |
Investigators say the alleged cell members were prepared to wage Jihad and carry out suicide attacks, but meanwhile were involved in proselytising and logistical support. Investigators suspect the alleged cell had ideological ties to Al-Qaeda although it did not appear to be associated with any terrorist organisation.
| That's because you haven't looked hard enough ... |
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