A Moroccan man went on trial Tuesday, accused of aiding the Hamburg terrorist cell involved in the September 11 attacks on the United States, according to the Washington Post.
In its Tuesday edition, the newspaper reported that prosecutors allege that Mounir el Motassadeq provided significant logistical support to the terrorist cell, which included lead suicide hijacker Mohamed Atta.
The first September 11 suspect outside the US to stand trial, the 28-year-old student could face life in jail if convicted on charges of belonging to a terrorist organization and over 3,000 counts of accessory to murder.
Prosecutors, for their part, say el Motassadeq trained at an al-Qaeda camp in Afghanistan and arranged wire transfers for the Hamburg cell ahead of the September 11 attacks on US cities.
When pilots Atta, Marwan al-Shehhi, and Ziad Jarrah left Hamburg back in 2000 to start flight training in Florida, el Motassadeq stayed behind, filtering money through an account to al-Shehhi in the United States, according to the indictment. El Motassadeq admits close links with members of the Hamburg cell, however says he was not privy to their attack plans and never traveled to Afghanistan. He has told investigators he paid utility, rent and school bills for al-Shehhi, but transferred no money to the United States, said Hans Leistritz, one of his two attorneys. (Albawaba.com)
