Trial of terror suspects begins
Sep 12, 2011
THE Police have tightened security at the Kampala High Court building as the trial of 19 terror suspects arrested in connection with last year’s twin bomb attacks in Kampala starts today.
By Steven Candia
THE Police have tightened security at the Kampala High Court building as the trial of 19 terror suspects arrested in connection with last year’s twin bomb attacks in Kampala starts today.
The suspects, many of them foreign nationals, appear before the International Crime Division of the High Court on 76 counts of murder, 10 of attempted murder and being accessory to a fact.
About 38 suspects were initially arrested and detained in connection with the grisly incident but most of them were released, leaving 19, most of whom have been in custody for over a year.
Access to the court will be restricted, the Police said. Normally, the public have free access to the courtroom. This time, the trial will be relayed on big television screens in the courtyard to enable relatives of the victims and others to follow the proceedings.
“Definitely, access will be restricted,†the Police spokesperson Judith Nabakooba, said yesterday. Media houses have been asked to get clearance from security for journalists who will cover the trial.
At least 15 defence lawyers, including two British legal experts, are to represent the suspects in the trial that has attracted international attention.
Several human rights groups have objected to the trial of one of the Kenyan suspects, Al-Amin Kimathi, the executive director of the Nairobi-based Muslim Human Rights Forum.
Kimathi was arrested on September 15 along with a Kenyan lawyer, Mbugua Mureithi, as they travelled to Uganda to observe the suspects’ court appearance.
Mureithi was released after three days and deported to Kenya. Kimathi was charged with terrorism, murder, and attempted murder on September 20 alongside other suspects.
More than a year ago, the Somali-based al-Shabaab militants, who have close links with the world’s leading terror group, Al Qaeda, attacked Uganda, killing 76 people who were watching the final of the FIFA World Cup.
The bombs went off almost simultaneously at the Kyadondo Rugby Grounds at Lugogo and the Ethiopian Village Restaurant in Kabalagala, Kampala.
Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the bombings, terming them as reprisal attacks for Uganda’s involvement in Somalia.
Although it is more than a year since the heinous attack, the chilling effect of the incident to Ugandans remains strong.
Yesterday, the Police anti-terrorism unit mounted checks in several public buildings in the city to ensure that anti-terror guidelines earlier issued are followed.
Prominent among those to appear in court are; Omar Awadh Omar, Al-Amin Kimathi, Hijar Suleiman Nyamadondo and Mohammed Ali Mohammed. There are also three Ugandans – two brothers Ahmed and Hassan Luyima plus Idris Nsubuga.
Omar Awadh Omar: He is said to be one of the highest value targets captured in connection with the heinous incident.
A Kenyan national, Awadh is believed to be the second in command of the East Africa al-Qaeda terrorist cell.
According to regional security intelligence, Awadh was high in the hierarchy of the terror cell and the second to the region’s al-Qaeda boss, Harun Fazul, who was killed mid this year by a combined force of Somali Transitional Government Forces (TGF) and African Union peacekeepers in Mogadishu together with several other commanders.
Police sources point at Awadh, also known as Abu Sahal, as the top logistician of the East African al-Qaeda cell and the al-Shabaab terrorists in Somalia.
Al-Amin Kimathi: He is a Kenyan citizen and said to be a human rights activist but security say it has intelligence that points to the contrary. Kimathi was arrested in September 2010 with Kenyan lawyer Mbugua Mureithi who has since been released.
His arrest and subsequent detention kicked up a storm with the Commonwealth Association of Lawyers calling for his release, saying he was a victim of a rendition by both the Kenyan and Uganda governments.
However, the Ugandan government snubbed the calls, saying Kimathi will only be released after the due process of court.
Hijar Seleman Nyamadondo: He is a Tanzanian national in his early 30s and said to be a resident of Arusha, Tanzania and a director of Kamanga Rumagambo investments.
He was extradited to Uganda in February this year after a lengthy legal process. Security accuses him of transporting the three bombs from Kenya to Kampala where they were used in the attacks.
Mohammed Ali Mohammed: He is a Kenyan citizen and was arrested and extradited to Uganda mid this year. Security says he was the second in command in plotting the July 11 attack.
Issa Luyima: He is a Ugandan in his mid-30s. He was picked up from the Kenyan coastal town of Mombasa and flown to Uganda. He is a key suspect and “foot soldier†in al-Shabaab and fought with the militants in Somalia.
He studied at Brilliant High School and Kawempe High School in Kawempe before working in Kampala.
THE Police have tightened security at the Kampala High Court building as the trial of 19 terror suspects arrested in connection with last year’s twin bomb attacks in Kampala starts today.
The suspects, many of them foreign nationals, appear before the International Crime Division of the High Court on 76 counts of murder, 10 of attempted murder and being accessory to a fact.
About 38 suspects were initially arrested and detained in connection with the grisly incident but most of them were released, leaving 19, most of whom have been in custody for over a year.
Access to the court will be restricted, the Police said. Normally, the public have free access to the courtroom. This time, the trial will be relayed on big television screens in the courtyard to enable relatives of the victims and others to follow the proceedings.
“Definitely, access will be restricted,†the Police spokesperson Judith Nabakooba, said yesterday. Media houses have been asked to get clearance from security for journalists who will cover the trial.
At least 15 defence lawyers, including two British legal experts, are to represent the suspects in the trial that has attracted international attention.
Several human rights groups have objected to the trial of one of the Kenyan suspects, Al-Amin Kimathi, the executive director of the Nairobi-based Muslim Human Rights Forum.
Kimathi was arrested on September 15 along with a Kenyan lawyer, Mbugua Mureithi, as they travelled to Uganda to observe the suspects’ court appearance.
Mureithi was released after three days and deported to Kenya. Kimathi was charged with terrorism, murder, and attempted murder on September 20 alongside other suspects.
More than a year ago, the Somali-based al-Shabaab militants, who have close links with the world’s leading terror group, Al Qaeda, attacked Uganda, killing 76 people who were watching the final of the FIFA World Cup.
The bombs went off almost simultaneously at the Kyadondo Rugby Grounds at Lugogo and the Ethiopian Village Restaurant in Kabalagala, Kampala.
Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the bombings, terming them as reprisal attacks for Uganda’s involvement in Somalia.
Although it is more than a year since the heinous attack, the chilling effect of the incident to Ugandans remains strong.
Yesterday, the Police anti-terrorism unit mounted checks in several public buildings in the city to ensure that anti-terror guidelines earlier issued are followed.
Prominent among those to appear in court are; Omar Awadh Omar, Al-Amin Kimathi, Hijar Suleiman Nyamadondo and Mohammed Ali Mohammed. There are also three Ugandans – two brothers Ahmed and Hassan Luyima plus Idris Nsubuga.
Omar Awadh Omar: He is said to be one of the highest value targets captured in connection with the heinous incident.
A Kenyan national, Awadh is believed to be the second in command of the East Africa al-Qaeda terrorist cell.
According to regional security intelligence, Awadh was high in the hierarchy of the terror cell and the second to the region’s al-Qaeda boss, Harun Fazul, who was killed mid this year by a combined force of Somali Transitional Government Forces (TGF) and African Union peacekeepers in Mogadishu together with several other commanders.
Police sources point at Awadh, also known as Abu Sahal, as the top logistician of the East African al-Qaeda cell and the al-Shabaab terrorists in Somalia.
Al-Amin Kimathi: He is a Kenyan citizen and said to be a human rights activist but security say it has intelligence that points to the contrary. Kimathi was arrested in September 2010 with Kenyan lawyer Mbugua Mureithi who has since been released.
His arrest and subsequent detention kicked up a storm with the Commonwealth Association of Lawyers calling for his release, saying he was a victim of a rendition by both the Kenyan and Uganda governments.
However, the Ugandan government snubbed the calls, saying Kimathi will only be released after the due process of court.
Hijar Seleman Nyamadondo: He is a Tanzanian national in his early 30s and said to be a resident of Arusha, Tanzania and a director of Kamanga Rumagambo investments.
He was extradited to Uganda in February this year after a lengthy legal process. Security accuses him of transporting the three bombs from Kenya to Kampala where they were used in the attacks.
Mohammed Ali Mohammed: He is a Kenyan citizen and was arrested and extradited to Uganda mid this year. Security says he was the second in command in plotting the July 11 attack.
Issa Luyima: He is a Ugandan in his mid-30s. He was picked up from the Kenyan coastal town of Mombasa and flown to Uganda. He is a key suspect and “foot soldier†in al-Shabaab and fought with the militants in Somalia.
He studied at Brilliant High School and Kawempe High School in Kawempe before working in Kampala.