A Dutch court acquitted 12 men Thursday accused of plotting a “holy war” against the West and helping to recruit al Qaeda and Taliban fighters in the Netherlands. The Rotterdam district court said there was no evidence to convict the men on charges of belonging to an unspecified criminal group that provided support to al Qaeda and the Taliban in their fight against U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan. The prosecution’s case was hit during the three-and-a-half week trial when judges ruled evidence provided by the Dutch secret service inadmissible. The court issued a rebuke to prosecutors, accusing them of mistakes and carelessness. “The verdict is disappointing. We thought we had a good criminal case. We are studying the ruling,” Rotterdam public prosecutor’s office said, after announcing it planned to appeal within weeks. The four Algerians, a Frenchman, a Moroccan, a Libyan, an Iraqi, an Egyptian, a Turk, a Mauritanian and a Dutch citizen were arrested last year in raids across the Netherlands after their phones were tapped. Police seized videos and books from their homes. Full Story
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