Cablegate: Peninsula Lions Update: Defense Challenges Charges

VZCZCXRO9031
OO RUEHBC RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDE RUEHKUK RUEHLH RUEHMOS RUEHPW
DE RUEHKU #4794/01 3201438
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 161438Z NOV 05
FM AMEMBASSY KUWAIT
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 1758
INFO RUCNISL/ISLAMIC COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA PRIORITY 0556
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEHKU/OMC-K KUWAIT KU PRIORITY
RUEHKU/USDAO KUWAIT KU PRIORITY
RUMICEA/USCENTCOM INTEL CEN MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KUWAIT 004794

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/ARPI AND S/CT, LONDON FOR TSOU, PARIS FOR ZEYA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PTER PREL PGOV JO IZ SA KU TERRORISM
SUBJECT: PENINSULA LIONS UPDATE: DEFENSE CHALLENGES CHARGES
WHILE ADMITTING CLIENTS' GUILT

REF: A. KUWAIT 4322
B. KUWAIT 1308

1. (SBU) The trial of the Peninsula Lions resumed on
November 12 amid tightening security with over a dozen
defense lawyers presenting their arguments one-by-one as the
trial judges sat and listened. The hearing, which began at 2
pm, has continued in extraordinary sessions finishing after 8
pm each night of the past week. The lawyers decided, as a
group, to present their defense back-to-back for the sake of
clarity and effectiveness. The presiding judges allowed the
defense a week to present its case but have asked that they
conclude by Wednesday, November 16. Poloff and PolAssistant
were present for the first defense lawyer's opening which
focused on U.S. actions in Iraq as a reason for the
defendants decision to take up arms. Some lawyers stated
that their defendants never planned for jihad in Kuwait, only
in Iraq, and therefore their defendants should be released.
Others, claiming that their clients confessed under duress
and torture, asked for immediate acquittal, while one
attorney stated that his client was guilty but that he was
now schizophrenic due to the interrogation methods and should
be released. There has been widespread coverage in both
Arabic and English press since the restart of the case and a
date for the judges's final decision on the fate of the
thirty-seven is expected to be announced at the end of the
November 16 session.

The Defense: Kuwait was Never a Target
--------------------------------------

2. (SBU) The first defense lawyer, Khaled Al-Abdul Jalil,
who represents six defendants, contended that his clients
never planned any harm to the State of Kuwait or its
officials, because they were planning on conducting jihad
against "occupation" forces in Iraq. (Note: Conducting
operations in a foreign country against forces friendly to
Kuwait, i.e. the U.S., is illegal under Kuwaiti law. End
note.) Stating that satellite television showed images of
foreign forces killing innocent civilians in Iraq, Jalil
asked for either full acquittal or maximum leniency since
they have no prior arrests. Following him were several
lawyers who stated that their clients' confessions should be
considered inadmissible due to the torture they endured
before signing them. Pointing out that there was a medical
report which supported the allegation of torture for some
defendants, the lawyers simply asked for release of their
clients and presented no further defense. Osama Al-Monawer,
a lawyer as well as defendant #26, asked for his own
acquittal and that of his clients, citing illegal wiretaps,
lack of evidence, and the fact that he himself is innocent of
all charges. (Note: Al-Monawer is also representing accused
jihadis in a separate trial. End note.)

3. (SBU) The list of the thirty-seven defendants was
exhibited outside the courtroom. Although still incomplete,
the names of the defendants listed below is now updated to
reflect the posted names as the court is filing them. The
defendants are still identified in court by number. Post
continues to verify the names at each hearing, since a
complete roster of full names is still not available. All
updated names will be submitted to the Department under the
Visas Viper program.

1. Mohammed Sa'ad Bin Oun
2. Ahmed Masameh Mohsen Majed Al Mutairi
3. Abdullah Saeed Habib Al Shimmari aka Abdullah Bu Arwa
4. Ahmed Mutlaq Nasser Al Mutairi
5. Misha'al Mutaal Mohammed Al Shimmari
6. Suleiman Hamed Suleiman Al-Shimmari
7. Ahmed Naghmish Abdulaziz Al-Enezi
8. Mohammed Essa Nawaf Al-Shimmari
9. Salah Abdullah Rabea Khalaf aka Salah Rabea Al Shimmari
10. Mohammed Sareh Zhoufour Al Ajmi
11. Mohsen Fadl Ayad Al-Fadhel/Al-Fadhli
12. Majed Mayyah Jeza'ah Al-Mutairi
13. Maqbul Fahd Fahhad Al-Maqbul
14. Khaled Abdullah Falah Al-Dosairi
15. Hamed Nawaf Hamdi Al-Harbi
16. Mohammed Ajman Safar Al-Mutairi
17. Hussam Yousef Abdul-Rahim
18. Abdulla Adel Abdulatif Al Rabei

KUWAIT 00004794 002 OF 002

19. Mohammed Abdullah Al-Otaibi
20. Ahmed Abdullah Mohammed Al-Otaibi
21. Abdul Latif Abdul Hadi Al Juwaisri
22. Mohammed Abdul Razzak Sheikh Essa
23. Fahed Shakheer Abdullah Al-Enezi
24. Nassir Ali Al-Otaibi
25. Mohammed Shuba'a Faraj Al-Otaibi
26. Osama Ahmed Hussein Al-Monawer
27. Bandar Ali Wanas Al-Shimmari
28. Adel Habib Al-Shimmari
29. Nouri Moudalal Muyeer Quwair
30. Faisal Amir Abu Qazila
31. Nuha Mohammed Roumi Al-Enezi
32. Talal Al-Adri
33. Faisal Falah Al-Dossari
34. Hamed Abdullah Hamed Al-Ali
35. Yassin Josef Mustapha
36. Mohammed Sa'ad Zamel Al-Rashidi
37. Ahmed Mohammed Wahish Al-Mutairi

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