Accused in Al Manara terror group trial seek acquittal

Abu Dhabi: Lawyers asked that defendants, who are alleged to be members of Al Manara terrorist group and who plotted to overthrow the government and set up a Daesh-style Caliphate, be cleared of all charges, the Federal Supreme Court heard Sunday.

Lawyer Saeed Al Zahmi, who defends seven men, told the court, presided over by judge Mohammad Jarrah Al Tunaiji, the offenses were untrue and inspection warrants were invalid.

“I ask that defendant be cleared of all charges for the lack of serious investigation, confirmed information or irrefutable evidences,” Al Zahmi told the court.

The lawyer also said the defendants’ confessions were groundless. “The alleged confessions of the seven defendants are extremely identical …Their words, sentences and information are quite similar, which shows that these confessions are fake and have been copy pasted,” Al Zahmi said.

He added that the way these alleged confessions were written showed that they were taken under duress. “These confessions were made by the defendants after eight months in solitary confinement and some of them were beaten,” the lawyer told the court.

Al Zahmi demanded that two young defendants, aged 18 years, be treated as minors. “Both defendants were 17-years-old when they were arrested and nearly 13 years of age when the alleged terrorist group was set up,” the lawyer said.

Al Zahmi said one of the men was a municipality inspector. “The defendant was inspecting a number of farms, when he was invited to take lunch with a group who were camping and exercising there. The man was arrested although he had nothing to do with the group,” Al Zahmi told the court.

The men earlier confessed in videos shown in the court that they had smuggled weapons, ammunition and detonators into the UAE to overthrow the government, declare a Daesh-style caliphate in the UAE and attack prominent shopping malls, hotels and nightclubs in Dubai.

The court earlier heard the suspects confessing in the footage of a plan to exploit the ensuing chaos to assassinate dignitaries.

Prosecutors made their case in the hearing and demanded maximum punishment for the defendants.

Jasim Al Naqbi, who is defending eight men, echoed the same arguments. “All defendants were squarely charged with the same offence ... There were no specific counts for each defendant… Moreover, they were charged with heading sports, cultural and media committees, which are all legal activities,” Al Naqbi said.

Al Naqbi also demanded that an 18-year-old defendant be treated as a minor. “The defendant was [only] 13 years old when the alleged Al Manara terrorist group was formed,” he said.

A total of 41 suspected members — including 39 Emiratis — of the alleged terrorist organisation are facing trial at a security court here.

In one clip, defendant A.K. said Al Rifa’a desert camp was set up on a five-metre-high plateau in Ras Al Khaimah.

“We organised meetings and listened to lectures about jihadi ideology given by the head of the group. We were trained to use weapons, machine-guns and bombs,” the defendant said.

Asked how they hid the weapons, the defendant told prosecutors in the clip shown to the court, that the gang hid packaged weapons, machine guns, ammunition and detonators in a number of holes located 50 metres from the camp.

The prosecutors have said the suspects are charged with setting up and running terrorist organisation Shabab Al Manara, ‘The Minaret’s Youths’, which upholds terrorist ideology with the intent to commit terrorist acts in the UAE, endangering the country’s security, peace and lives of its dignitaries and people.

The State Security Prosecution presented five types of weapons, including Kalashnikov rifles, MP5 and M16 machine guns, explosives and detonators used in making bombs as well as a huge number of bullets and magazines.

The evidence, consisting of seven boxes of ammunition and weapons, was carried into the court by three people. One of the defendants admitted to possessing one of the rifles but said that his father owned it, adding that it was a hunting rifle and was at his father’s home and not with him. A witness testimony revealed that the main defendant, K.K., had lost a son while fighting with Daesh militants in Iraq.

Convicted terrorists face capital punishment, life imprisonment and fines of up to Dh100 million, according to a federal law to combat terrorism endorsed last year.

The trial continues. Next hearing has been adjourned to January 3 to allow the lawyers to present their defence.

Contempt of court

Seventeen men and 18 women, media professionals and four lawyers attended the hearing which started at 11am and lasted 90 minutes.

A defendant’s father, a plenipotentiary, was held for contempt after he clapped to show admiration of the lawyer’s defence.

Another defendant, who opposed to the judge’s action, was thrown out of the courtroom and ordered to be returned to the prison.

A defendant, N.A.M., defended himself and plead not guilty. “I had nothing to do with this group and main defendant said in a video clip that the organisation was made of 10 men. So my name was inserted because I attended a sermon in a mosque. So I asked that I be cleared of all charges,” the man told the court.