DOHA, 30 July 2004 — A Qatari court yesterday threw out an appeal by two Russian spies sentenced to life in prison for murdering a Chechen separatist in the Gulf state.
“The court rejects the appeal in contents and the earlier verdict is upheld. This decision is final,” presiding judge Abdullah Al-Saadi said at the end of the court session in Doha.
Russian news agencies reported the appeal’s rejection. The February murder of Zelimkhan Yandarbiyev, who was briefly president of Chechnya during separatists’ brief stay in power in the Russian region, threatened a diplomatic breach between Qatar and Russia. Russia denies involvement in the murder and says the spies were engaged in legitimate counterterrorism work. The court said the killing had been ordered by the Russian leadership.
Qatari officials said that now the appeal had failed, only intervention by Qatari ruler Sheikh Hamad ibn Khalifa Al-Thani could free the men.
“In the interests of the quickest return of the defendants home, the defense has petitioned for the convicted men to be handed over to Russia,” said lawyer Dmitry Afanasyev, according to Interfax news agency.
