ON EDIT: My headline was too extreme
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-3320946,00.htmlTuesday October 28, 2003 10:16 PM
By DAVID RISING
Associated Press Writer
BERLIN (AP) - In a dramatic turn in a Sept. 11 trial,
the defense - and now a growing segment of the
German media - is charging that the government's
case against a terror suspect in Hamburg is on
the verge of collapse. But legal experts say the
prosecution could still win a conviction.
The defense is citing the testimony of a German
intelligence official who said the Hamburg cell of
Sept. 11 suicide pilots became involved in Osama
bin Laden's plot to attack the World Trade Center
only after four cell members attended Afghan
training camps in late 1999.
The indictment alleges they had decided to attack
the United States with hijacked airliners months
earlier, before visiting Afghanistan.
Lawyers for Abdelghani Mzoudi, a Moroccan
accused of supporting the Hamburg cell,
immediately moved for their client's release from
custody following the testimony Friday by German
intelligence agency chief Heinz Fromm, arguing his
timeline was inconsistent with the government's.
The court is expected to respond this week.