Trio acquitted of London 7/7 charges

A British jury has cleared three men of charges of conspiring with four suicide bombers who killed 52 people in London's 2005 suicide bombings.

Waheed Ali, Sadeer Saleem, and Mohammed Shakil were acquitted of the most serious offenses at the Kingston Crown Court Tuesday, but two of them were found guilty for lesser charges. The carefully collected evidence against them was largely circumstantial, and could not finally persuade the British jurors of their alleged guilt.

Four bombers and 52 commuters died in the attacks on July 7, 2005 when bombers set off bombs they carried in sacks on three subway trains and a double-decker bus.

Ali and Shakil will be jailed Wednesday for a second charge of "conspiring to attend a terror training camp".

Ali, 25, Shakil, 32, and Saleem, 28, who had been accused of collaborating with the suicide bombers, were the only people ever charged for the deadly bombings, and their acquittals mean that no one has been legally held accountable for the attacks.

In a statement, Saleem accused police and prosecutors of charging him based on "guilt by association".

"I am indebted to these 12 courageous individuals who have now cleared my name and allowed me the opportunity of seeing my children grow up," he said in the statement.

This is the latest blow to British authorities who have been forced to release Muslims after arresting them on terrorism charges amid much publicity, only to be forced to release them - often quietly - for lack of evidence.

The latest manifestation of what many describe as 'Islamophobia' was the much publicized arrest of eleven Muslim students in Manchester on April 8. ...


via Trio acquitted of London 7/7 charges.