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September 11 Suspect Goes on Trial
Tuesday, October 22, 2002
(06:05 GMT)
The Associated Press

All were united by "hatred of world Jewry and the United States," Germany's chief federal prosecutor, Kay Nehm, said in unveiling el Motassadeq's indictment in August.

HAMBURG, Germany -- AP
A 28-year-old Moroccan student goes on trial amid tight security Tuesday on charges of aiding the Hamburg terrorist cell involved in the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States, which included lead suicide hijacker Mohamed Atta.

Prosecutors allege that Mounir el Motassadeq, being tried in a Hamburg state court, was a key cell logistician. The first Sept. 11 suspect outside the United States to stand trial, he could face life in prison if convicted on charges of belonging to a terrorist organization and more than 3,000 counts of accessory to murder.

El Motassadeq trained at an al-Qaida camp in Afghanistan and helped the Hamburg cell with logistical support leading up to the Sept. 11 attacks, prosecutors say. When terrorist pilots Atta, Marwan al-Shehhi and Ziad Jarrah left Hamburg in 2000 to begin flight training in Florida, el Motassadeq stayed behind, filtering money through an account to al-Shehhi in the United States, according to the indictment.

El Motassadeq admits close ties with members of the Hamburg cell, but he says he was not privy to their attack plans and never traveled to Afghanistan. He has told investigators he paid utility, rent and school bills for al-Shehhi, but transferred no money to the United States, said Hans Leistritz, one of his two attorneys.
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2002 © The Associated Press.

Dan