THE NETHERLANDS: The trial of 12 suspected Islamic militants charged with helping al-Qaeda wage "holy war" opened in Rotterdam yesterday.
The men are accused of "aiding the enemy of the Dutch state and her allies in a time of armed conflict," a charge last used in the Netherlands in the aftermath of the second World War.
Lawyers for the defendants, most of whom are of North African or Middle Eastern origin, argued the court was not competent to hear the case and said it should be moved to a military court, a move legal experts dismissed as a stalling tactic.
Prosecutors say some of the suspects actively recruited and trained men to wage Islamic jihad or holy war against non-Muslims at a time when the Netherlands was "at war" with the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and the al-Qaeda network.
In particular, they are accused of involvement in recruiting two Dutch nationals of Moroccan origin who were killed in clashes with Indian border police in the disputed state of Kashmir in January last year.
The suspects are also accused of forgery, receiving stolen goods, trafficking human beings and drugs and illegally possessing weapons. - (AFP)