Free Republic

AMMAN: Jordan’s state prosecutor on Sunday demanded death penalty for the Al Qaeda leader in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, and 11 other suspects accused of plotting a chemical bomb attack on intelligence services. “The prosecutor wrapped up his case in the trial by demanding the maximum penalty (death) for 12 suspects,” a judicial source told AFP. A 13th suspect is being accused of a misdemeanour in the trial, in which four of the suspects, including Zarqawi, are being tried in absentia. The nine suspects in the dock, including alleged ringleader Azmi Jayussi, and the fugitives are accused of plotting, on...

AMMAN, Jordan (Reuters) - Jordanian state television aired Monday what it said were confessions by captured militants tied to al Qaeda who said they had planned deadly chemical attacks that could have killed thousands of people. Authorities had already reported the plot earlier this month, but the confessions shown on a prime-time broadcast provided further details of the planned attacks. The arrested militants, who included Syrians, said they were ordered by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, accused by Washington of being a top al Qaeda supporter, to attack targets that included the heavily fortified U.S. embassy and intelligence headquarters. The head of...