SPAIN: Muslim leader in Spain says he trusts the country's judicial system as country prepares to try 29 people charged with involvement in the Madrid train bombings

Twenty Islamist militants and nine Spaniards are due to stand trial on Thursday (February 15) in connection with the Madrid train bombings that killed 191 and left almost 2000 wounded on March 11 2004. Speaking ahead of the hearings, the director of Madrid's Islamic Centre said he trusts the Spain's judiciary system as the bomb victims prepare to face those accused of the attacks. One of Europe's biggest terrorism cases begins in Madrid this week with 29 suspects due to take the stand. Twenty Arab men will face allegations that include providing drugs to pay for explosives, helping suspects escape and preparing the bombs that blew apart four crowded commuter trains, killing 191 and injuring almost 2,000 people on March 11 2004. Nine Spaniards -eight men and one woman- are charged with supplying and delivering explosives to the Islamist cell. According to the Spanish Islamic Commission, more than a million Muslims live in Spain. Almost three years after the attacks, four-fifths of Muslim immigrants in Spain feel that they have adapted to life there, showed a Spanish poll last November. However, many feel that the anti-Muslim bias grew after the bombings. Despite the train bombings and a rocky history with Islam, Spain says Muslim immigrants have integrated well and it has so far avoided arguments shaking other European countries, such as whether women should be allowed to wear a veil over their face. Speaking ahead of the case opening, Director of Cultural Affairs at the Islamic Cultural Centre in Madrid, Saif Ben Abdennour, said that the alleged offenders were a small radical wing that believes violence is an acceptable way to defend their religion. Abdennour also said that he believes the Spanish judiciary will conduct a fair trial. "We want the truth to be known --we are anxious to hear the truth. We think everybody should know the details of this macro-trial that is going to take place. We are facing it with optimism and serenity," he told Reuters. A video message released said the attacks were revenge for Spain sending troops to Iraq and Afghanistan and claimed al Qaeda was behind the attacks. The judge investigating the case said the attack was inspired by -but not ordered by- al Qaeda. Meanwhile, victims are steeling their nerves before the trial. On March 11 2004, Jesus Ramirez Castanedo was on his way to work when two bombs shattered his legs and his life. On Thursday, he will look those accused of the attacks in the eyes. On the tragic day, Ramirez Castanedo kept to his routine of 35 years. He woke up before dawn, walked to the station, bought his newspaper and looked around hopefully for a seat on the train from the suburb of Santa Engracia into the centre of Madrid. Just as he was sitting down, two bombs planted by Islamist militants exploded, bursting his ear drums, burning his body and breaking his legs. "One of the questions that as victims we ask ourselves repeatedly is what kind of mental mechanism drives people to jump a train at seven in the morning to leave backpacks full of dynamite and shrapnel knowing nothing about the people's lives they are about to ruin," he said. Ramirez and other victims of the train bombings have been in weekly counselling since the biggest al Qaeda-related attack in Europe. They have been getting extra help ahead of the trial of 29 people charged with involvement in the attack. Psychologists preparing them for the court case have seen victims express a lot of anger as well as fear that the trial will bring back painful memories. During the hearings, expected to last more than five months, lawyers will provide evidence of how an Islamist cell grew up in Spain and was encouraged to carry out an attack to try to force the government to withdraw its troops from Iraq. The state prosecutor has requested sentences totalling 270,600 years for the seven main defendants, but under Spanish law the maximum term any individual can serve is 40 years. The Spanish government has raised its terrorism alert to medium from low ahead of the trial. The Interior Ministry said on Tuesday it would reinforce police patrols in crowded areas like shopping malls, stations, and stadiums and give extra protection to key infrastructures like power plants and the drinking water network. Spain has 3 security levels. Since the March 11, 2004 train bombings, it has raised the alert to level 2 at various times, including just after the July 7 attacks in London.

ITN Source | February 15, 2007

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