Terror trial
July 13, 2009
After a trial that lasted eight months, a court in the western city of Koblenz on Monday convicted Aleem N. of membership in al-Qaeda and of eight counts of breaching German export laws.
The 47-year-old diamond trader was sentenced to eight years in jail for actively supporting the terrorist group.
Prosecutors said Aleem N. supported al-Qaeda for years, raising money, distributing propaganda material and recruiting new members. He is thought to be a key figure for the organization's German operations.
The German man of Pakistani descent was arrested in February of last year on allegations that he belonged to the terrorist group.
Investigators say that in the summer of 2004, he became part of the inner sanctum of the organization and received orders to recruit new members and supporters in Germany.
Investigators believe that by 2007, Aleem N. had sent four young fighters - together with letters of recommendation - to be trained in terror camps. One of them is believed to be a Bonn-based man, who appeared in an anti-German terrorist video earlier this year.
The defence had called for Aleem N. to be acquitted.
tkw/dpa/reuters
Editor: Chuck Penfold