An update on this story. "Trial begins in Denmark against terror suspects," by Jan M. Olsen for the Associated Press, August 11:
COPENHAGEN, Denmark - Two alleged Islamic militants accused of preparing a bomb attack went on trial in Denmark on Monday, with prosecutors showing secret video footage of them testing a highly explosive material in an apartment building in Copenhagen.
And you thought your neighbors were bad.
The prosecution said the two men conducted the small test blast with the same explosive that was used by suicide bombers who killed 52 commuters in London in 2005.
Both defendants have pleaded not guilty but admitted making triacetone triperoxide, or TATP, saying it was to be used for fireworks.
Denmark's intelligence service said earlier that the suspects had links to leading al-Qaida figures, but the charges read Monday in a Copenhagen court did not mention such links.
The 22-year-old men were arrested during an anti-terror sweep in September in the Danish capital. They cannot be named under a court order.
If convicted, the defendants of Afghan and Pakistani background could face life in prison, although such sentences are generally reduced to 16 years under Danish law. The Pakistani also is a Danish citizen, while the Afghan has a staying permit in Denmark.
In May 2007, Denmark's PET intelligence service was tipped off by an unidentified foreign service that the man of Pakistani origin was on his way back to Denmark after having spent time in a terrorist training camp in Pakistan.
PET then tapped his phone and computer, and secretly installed surveillance video cameras in his home in Copenhagen, prosecutor Lone Damsgaard told the City Court in Glostrup, a city suburb.
It was unclear what the target of the alleged planned terrorist attack was, but Damsgaard said the defendant of Pakistani origin asked contacts in Pakistan through an Internet chatroom for addresses of hotels and the Danish Embassy in Islamabad.
On June 2, 2008, a car bomb exploded outside the Danish Embassy in Islamabad, killing six people and wounding about 35. But the defendants are not accused of involvement in that attack.
Footage from the surveillance cameras played in court showed the Pakistani defendant sitting on the floor in his apartment in Copenhagen, saying he was getting ready for a martyrdom trip.
In other footage, the two men are seen leaving the room after which an explosion is heard, followed by the men returning from the stairwell of an apartment building in a densely populated area of Copenhagen. Damsgaard said they were testing the TAPT there on Sept. 1 — three days before they were arrested. Bomb manuals were found in both men's apartments, one concealed in a pillow cover, the other in a book, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors have called both defendants Islamic militants without providing the name of what group or groups they belonged to.
A verdict is expected on Oct. 23.
A third man was arrested and charged in the case for allegedly urging the kidnapping of Danes abroad as a way to force Danish authorities to release the two jailed defendants now on trial. The third man's trial is scheduled for later this year.
Danish police say they have thwarted a series of terrorist attacks in recent years.
In November 2007, a Palestinian immigrant, an Iraqi Kurd and a Danish convert to Islam were found guilty of plotting a bomb attack on an unidentified target and sentenced up to 11 years in prison. In February, 2007, a Danish court convicted a 17-year-old man of involvement in a terror plot uncovered in Bosnia in October 2005.
Knowing the way that the Danish kowtow down to almost every Muslim demands, I figure that these jerks will get about 6 months in the slammer, if that.
"Prosecutors have called both defendants Islamic militants without providing the name of what group or groups they belonged to."
-- from the article above
They don't need to belong to a group. They could be acting on their own. Why seek a "group" in every case, or even feel that without such a "group" the acts of individuals are not quite as culpable, and pursuit of them not quite as legitimate?
Mystical Time Traveler said :-
Knowing the way that the Danish kowtow down to almost every Muslim demands, I figure that these jerks will get about 6 months in the slammer, if that.
Could you please tell me what you have been smoking or do you have difficulty engaging the mental gears early in the morning. Here are a few facts to get things straightened out.
You seem to have forgotten the cartoons that were published in a Danish paper a couple of years ago, to the consternation of the permanently outraged muslims who demanded an apology. The Prime Minister refused to apologies, even refusing to see a delegation of ambassadors from 11 Muslim countries saying that there was nothing to talk about as the Newspaper had broken no laws.
Honor killings don't go down too well in Denmark either, a couple of years ago, a muslim family had there daughter killed by the youngest son, she had married another muslim who they didn't like. They thought that they could get away with it as the son was on 14 and would come under the juvenile courts, a couple of years in juvenile detention and he would be out on the streets again. They reckoned with out the kowtowing Danes who arrested the whole family gave most of them heavy sentences and are going to deport most of them when they are released.
I don't suppose you have heard of the name Jesper Gilbert Pedersen, you should. The kowtowing Danes have just buried him with full military honors, he is as far as I know the last Danish soldier to die in Afganistan. This brings the total up to I think 16, not many you might think. You must remember that Denmark is a small country with a population of 5,000,000 and if it had a population of the U.S.A. 300,000,000 it would be the equivalent of of nearly 1,000 deaths.
The Danes are one of the U.S.A. Staunchest allies and have been more than pulling their weight in Afghanistan.
I see on the profile at your Blogg that one of your favourite books is ALTERNATE HISTORY, may I suggest that you read some real history, or at least get your facts right. Kowtowing if my memory serves me correctly is a Chinese custom where one kneels and touches ones head on the ground as a form of obsequious respect. Knowing the Danes as I do, I just don't think that it is going to catch on.
Deep Regards
Holger Dansker
Most eloquent, Holger Dansker. Spoken like a true, proud Dane of hardy Viking stock!
"Both defendants have pleaded not guilty but admitted making triacetone triperoxide, or TATP, saying it was to be used for fireworks."
What's the matter with the islamophobe prosecutors over in Denmark? These lads were just making fireworks! You know, for all the religious celebrations like eid al-fitr, eid al-adha, and ashura. Fireworks. Yeah right. Where have we heard that before?
ImNoDhimmi, if memory serves....in South Carolina when the 2 Florida students were found with..."fireworks" in the car near a military base, those pranksters!
A martyrdom operation is basically a delayed fuse, location programmable, human smart bomb, armed or unarmed. Now if we found a conventional unexploded smart bomb, armed or unarmed, we would likely detonate it in a safe environment.
I suggest we take the martyrdom operation to a safe place and detonate it. Problem solved.
"If convicted, the defendants of Afghan and Pakistani background could face life in prison, although such sentences are generally reduced to 16 years under Danish law.
Mustn't be too severe with these poor Muslim zombies who would blow a lot of us up. And we shouldn't deport him either since they might not treat him nice back in the home country.
I'm sure there must be a suicide gene in descendants of Ancient Europeans that would be modified by genetic operations in the future except that it will come too late – to the delight of the rest of the world who have always smiled at our soft heartedness.
I have to say that the "fireworks" defense has already been used. Can't they come up with something else?
Holger - good post! The Danes are setting the standard that the rest of Europe should follow.
They will get a light sentence. From what I've seen in Europe, Muslims are a very protected minority and cannot be made accountable for their actions.
I still say, a slap on the wrist will be their punishment.
From the article:
"In November 2007, a Palestinian immigrant, an Iraqi Kurd and a Danish convert to Islam were found guilty of plotting a bomb attack on an unidentified target and sentenced up to 11 years in prison."
Correction.
"In November 2007 a 'Palestinian' Arab Muslim immigrant, a Kurdish Muslim from Iraq, and a Danish convert to Islam...".
I don't mean any disrespect by this question, but what is the point of any number of deaths of any certain nationality when individual countries won't stand up to these people "playing with fireworks" or killing family members or native citizens? Au contraire, one would think that if your respective country lost X% of soldiers to them that your respective country would not be inclined to go easy on the terrorists? Why do they "go easy"? Why do so many European countries treat terrorists so softly?
"European countries treat terrorists so softly?
Posted by: charlie "
Because they allowed too many violent Muslims to immigrate and now they fear if they take any action against the Muslims the Muslims will become more violent...
Now the European countries face a decision...fight or die...and they are making the wrong decisions far too often...
Exsgtbrown wrote " they allowed too many violent Muslims to immigrate and now they fear if they take any action against the Muslims ... will become more violent."
I'm sure you hit the nail on the head. Now if we could just get a European or two to admit it.