Pakistani court charges 5 Americans with terrorism

In this Jan. 4, 2010, file photo, Pakistani police officers with detained Americans leave a police station to send them into prison in Sargodha, Pakistan. A Pakistani court charged the five young Americans on Wednesday with planning terrorist attacks. (AP)

By ZARAR KHAN | AP

ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani court charged five young Americans on Wednesday with planning terrorist attacks in the South Asian country and conspiring to wage war against nations allied with Pakistan, their defense lawyer said.

The men - all Muslims from the Washington, D.C., area - pleaded not guilty to a total of five charges, the most severe of which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison, defense lawyer Hasan Dastagir told The Associated Press.

“My clients were in good shape and high spirits,” Dastagir said.

The men, aged 19 to 25, were charged by an anti-terrorism court inside a prison in Sargodha, the city in Punjab province where they were arrested in December. They were reported missing by their families in November after one left behind a farewell video showing scenes of war and casualties and saying Muslims must be defended.

Their lawyer has said they were heading to Afghanistan and had no plans to stage attacks inside Pakistan.

The court also charged the men with planning attacks on Afghan and US territory, said Dastagir. The charges did not specify what was meant by US territory but could be a reference to American bases or diplomatic outposts in Afghanistan.

The men also were charged with contributing cash to banned organizations to be used for terrorism and with directing each other to commit terrorist acts.

“This last charge carries life in prison while the rest of the charges have lesser punishments,” Dastagir said.

The trial will begin on March 31, and the prosecution is slated to present more than 20 witnesses, Dastagir said.

The defense plans to bring witnesses from the US and provide evidence of community service carried out by the men back home, Dastagir said.

Pakistani police have publicly made several accusations against the young men, claiming the suspects contacted Pakistani-based jihadi groups. They accused the five of using the social networking site Facebook and video-sharing site YouTube while they were in the US to try to connect with extremist groups in Pakistan.

During past court hearings, the men have claimed they were tortured by Pakistani police and FBI agents. Pakistan and the US have denied those allegations.

The US has pressed an often-reluctant Pakistan to crack down on militants in its territory, many of whom are believed involved in attacks on American and NATO forces across the border in Afghanistan. At the same time, several recent cases have highlighted incidences of foreigners signing up to join the insurgents on both sides of the border.

Two of the detained Americans are of Pakistani origin, while one is of Egyptian, one of Yemeni and one of Eritrean descent.

Comments

MIKE MCD

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These "gentlemen" should get a fair trial, and after they are found guilty I hope they spend the rest of their lives rotting in the most despicable jail on earth. If Pakistan decides to return them to the US then they should be tried for treason and if found guilty, executed. Terrorist scum.

POLK

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I find am always dismayed to see anyone that is desperately trying to stop foreign aggression in (especially) the Middle East, Asia and South America....referred to as "Terrorists" by the Aggressors and their Friends.

As the World becomes more enslaved by these Aggressors....it draws nearer to complete destruction....because "Injustice" will always be resisted by the poor and helpless.

When will the Masses become aware of their ruthless governments and their Media Control?

ASIF SIDDIQI

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Its a shame that Muslims have come to this level. Fighting each other and preaching Islam to each other even if takes the route of killing and destruction. If only we can return back to the ACTUAL ways of Islam then only we will be saved by the humiliation we as Muslims suffer each day.

OKEYCHINA

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the five accused five American should be punished according to law, despite their nationalities. If they are guilty these charges, we must fight terrorist...

ASHOK

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these terrorist are all american spies, they work for FBI ,once they go to america ,they will leave a lavish life,,or will be send to other country on duty same as they were doing in pakistan of speading terrorism
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