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| Arabia |
| Long Jail Terms to 11 Islamists in UAE over Ties to Syria Jihadists |
| 2014-12-11 |
| [AnNahar] A top Emirati court on Tuesday sentenced 11 Islamists to up to life imprisonment for links to al-Qaeda-affiliated turbans as well as rebels in Syria, official media reported. The Federal Supreme Court convicted them of bomb-making and of joining and financing al-Qaeda franchise al-Nusra ...the current nom de guerre of al-Qaeda in the Levant, which isn't to be confused with al-Qaeda in Iraq and the Levant... Front and Islamist rebel group Ahrar al-Sham ...a Syria jihadi group made up of Islamists and salafists, not that there's that much difference, formed into a brigade. They make up the main element of the Islamic Front but they don't profess adoration of al-Qaeda and they've been fighting (mainly for survival) against the Islamic State. Their leadership was wiped out at a single blow by a suicide kaboom at a crowded basement meeting in September, 2014... , both in Syria. Four defendants, who were tried in their absence, were handed life sentences while seven others were locked away I ain't sayin' nuttin' widdout me mout'piece! for between three and 15 years, the WAM news agency said. They include six foreigners -- four with Comoros Islands passports and two Syrians -- who will be deported after serving their jail terms, according to local media. Four other defendants were acquitted. The UAE in November released a long list of what it branded "terrorist organizations," topped by the Moslem Brüderbund and al-Qaeda. The UAE has not seen any of the pro-reform protests that have swept other Arab countries since 2011, including fellow Gulf states Bahrain and Oman. But authorities have stepped up a crackdown on dissent and calls for democratic reform. Most of those targeted have been Islamists. In August, the UAE toughened anti-terrorism laws in a bid to stamp out terror financing, hostage-taking, human trafficking and money laundering. |
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