German court convicts 4 in terror plot against Jewish targets News
German court convicts 4 in terror plot against Jewish targets

[JURIST] A German court on Wednesday found four Middle Eastern men guilty of links to al Qaeda and of plotting to attack Jewish targets in Germany, and the four were sentenced to between five and eight years in prison. The four men, arrested in 2002 for alleged plots against two Jewish-owned discos in Dusseldorf and a Berlin community center, included two from Jordan and one each from Palestine and Algeria. According to the judge in the case, all four were found to have taken orders from Iraqi insurgent leader Abu Musad al-Zarqawi [BBC profile]. German leaders, including Interior Minister Otto Schily, praised the outcome as evidence of the country continued efforts to fight terrorism [JURIST report]. Three of the men were convicted of belonging to a terror cell and having forged documents allowing them to remain in the country, while the fourth was convicted of aiding the others and of weapons law violations. From Germany, Deutsche Welle has local coverage. The New York Times has more [registration required].