Verdict on Lebanese suspect in German train bombing on December 18

Dec 11, 2007, 13:00 GMT

Beirut - The final trial of one of the main Lebanese suspects accused of plotting to blow up two trains in Germany in July 2006 was adjourned Tuesday until December 18, judicial sources said.

According to the sources the 'final verdict of Jihad Hamad and three other Lebanese linked with the case will be announced on December 18.'

Hamad who was permitted to speak at the end of the court session asked the judge to 'have mercy on him and to give him a reduced sentence.'

Hamad admitted in previous court hearings that he and Youssef al- Haj Dib, currently in custody in Germany, bought two gas canisters, wires and two bags to place on the trains to protest against the caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed originally published in a Danish newspaper.

The two suspected terrorists allegedly placed two suitcases containing bombs on the trains.

Had there not been errors in the bombs' construction, German investigators said the explosions near the cities of Hamm and Koblenz would have resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people, making the plotted attack much larger than the terrorist attacks on London in July 2005.

Hamad has always denied that he was a follower of any 'Muslim fundamentalist group or jihadist group.' He also denied any links with the Sunni Muslim fundamentalist group al-Qaeda which is led by Osama bin Laden.

The judge also questioned during Tuesday's session the three Lebanese citizens who were arrested with Hamad: Khaled al-Haj Dib, Ayman Hadad and Khalil al-Bobo.

'The three said they were innocent and asked for reduced sentences,' the source said.

Khaled al-Haj Dib said that his connection with Hamad went back to university and he denied any links to the German bombing plot.

Hadad said he met Hamad in Tripoli, and denied that he had any knowledge of the bombing plot or belonged to any Islamic movement.

Al-Bobo also denied having any connection with the German bombing plot, but said he met Saddam al-Haj Dib, brother of Youssef al Haj Dib, through a common friend called Osama al-Shahabi, who was responsible for sending Muslims to fight in Iraq.

'At the time, I was impressed with the way al-Haj Dib thinks - his jihadist thinking - and we exchanged telephone numbers,' al-Bobo told the judge.

Al-Bobo was arrested and jailed in Lebanon for throwing a bomb at a Lebanese Army checkpoint in the north of the country last year.

The four suspects hail from areas in northern Lebanon where Sunni fundamentalist movements have been flourishing for the past few years.

Hamad's father Shahid, who was present during the court session, appealed 'for mercy' for his son who 'obviously fell into the wrong hands when he was in Germany.'

He said that his son was a student and not a fundamentalist. Shahid said he decided to send his son to Germany for the better education and job opportunities available in the country.

Hamad turned up at his parents' house in Tripoli shortly after the attempted bombings in July 31.

He had been taking German language classes for six months in Germany and he explained his sudden appearance by saying that he was worried about his parents because of the July 2006 war between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah movement.

German police have said that the publication of the caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed in German newspapers may have prompted Jihad Hamad and Youssef al-Haj Dib to devise their plot.

Lebanese Chief Public Prosecutor Said Mirza has accused Jihad Hamad of organizing and attempting mass murder. If he is convicted on December 18, he would face life imprisonment and forced labour, unless the judge grants him a reduced sentence which can vary between 15-20 years in jail, the judicial sources said.