Kuwaiti court acquits 2 ex-Gitmo inmates

[babylonsister]

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-03-03-kuwait_N.htm

Kuwaiti court acquits 2 ex-Gitmo inmates

KUWAIT CITY (AP) — A criminal court on Saturday acquitted two former Guantanamo Bay prisoners of joining al-Qaeda or the Taliban.

Omar Rajab Amin and Abdullah Kamel al-Kundari denied any terror connections at the start of their trial. Their lawyers argued there was no evidence against them and the case was "political." Defense attorneys said the accused were in Afghanistan for charity work — not to fight.

Details of the ruling, which was announced by a court clerk, were not immediately available. The two men were not in court Saturday, but one of their lawyers, Thikra al-Majdali, said she expected them to be released from custody by tomorrow.

The prosecution can appeal the ruling, but it was not clear Saturday if it would do so.

Amin, 41, and al-Kundari, 32, were released from the U.S. detention camp in September after spending nearly five years there. They were detained by authorities for questioning upon their return to Kuwait.

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