Posted on 07/02/2007 8:37:45 AM PDT by Valin
The trial of 28 defendants accused of organising the Madrid bombings of 11 March 2004 has entered its final day. Defence lawyers are making closing arguments on behalf of their clients, all of whom have pleaded not guilty. The defendants, who are alleged to be linked to al-Qaeda, are accused of killing 191 people and wounding 1,841, in attacks on four commuter trains. Some of the accused could face up to 40 years in jail when verdicts are handed down in October.
The panel of judges is expected to begin deliberations once the defence lawyers have finished speaking. The eight prime suspects could be sentenced to a theoretical maximum of 39,000 years in jail each, if found guilty.
Acquittal plea
Three of the eight are accused of planning the attacks, two are alleged to have placed bombs on board the trains, two are described as "necessary co-operators," and one, a Spaniard, is accused of supplying the explosives. The other defendants are charged with lesser offences, such as membership of or collaboration with a terrorist group. A lawyer for Rabei Osman, an Egyptian alleged to be on of the masterminds, said he should be acquitted for lack of evidence. "I ask you for a fair sentence, and in the case of Rabei Osman, a judgment of acquittal," said lawyer Endika Zulueta.
The bomb attacks took place three days before parliamentary elections in Spain, and could have contributed to the defeat of the centre-right Popular Party, which supported the Iraq invasion and had sent troops there.
Up to 40 years??????
They should be flayed alive! (And it’s got nothing to do with Bobby)
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