Moroccan jailed for 10 years over Casablanca bombs
RABAT (AFP)
A Moroccan man already convicted over the 2004 Madrid bombings was sentenced Monday on appeal to 10 years in jail for his role in suicide attacks the year before in Casablanca that killed 45 people.
A Moroccan man already convicted over the 2004 Madrid bombings was sentenced Monday on appeal to 10 years in jail for his role in suicide attacks the year before in Casablanca that killed 45 people.Hassan Al Haski, 41, was arrested in Spain in 2004 and extradited to Morocco in September 2008 while serving a 14-year sentence for belonging to the group that carried out the Madrid bomb attacks that killed 181 people.
His sentencing on appeal Monday comes less than four weeks after he was acquitted by Morocco's anti-terrorist tribunal and was met with an angry response from his lawyer.
"It's an unfair verdict, the appeals process was summary," said Khalil El Idrissi.
Al Haski is not the first person to be probed in connection with both attacks.
Another Moroccan suspect in the 2004 Madrid bombings, Saad Housseini, was given a 15-year jail sentence last week by a Rabat court for his role in the Casablanca attacks.
Housseini, a chemistry graduate, is suspected of having made the Madrid bombs.
Originally from the Moroccan city of Meknes, he visited Afghanistan in 2002. He was questioned by police upon his return that same year and released without charge.
The May 2003 suicide bombings in Casablanca were the deadliest ever in Morocco. Forty-five people died including 12 suicide bombers. Dozens more were injured.