Yemen Sentences Al-Awlaki in Absentia
According to al-Jazeera,in an article entitled "Yemen Sentences al-Awlaki in Absentia," the government of Yemen indicted al-Awlaki and his cousin, Othman al-Awlaki, for inciting another man, Hisham Mohammed Assem, to carry out an attack on westerners at an oil facility where Assem worked as a security guard.
Assem was the only one of the three in custody. A Yemen court convicted him of murdering a French national, and received the death penalty. Anwar and Othman al-Awlaki received 10 and 8 year sentences.
Al-Jazeera notes: "The US has linked al-Awlaki to a US army major charged with shooting dead 13 people in Fort Hood, Texas in November 2009, as well as to a Nigerian student accused of trying to blow up a Northwest Airlines flight on December 25 that year."
For the al-Jazeera article, click here.
For a link to a Lawfare blog of the same topic, see "Al-Awlaki Prosecuted Successfully in a Civilian Court?"
For a relevant CNN article, see "Yemeni court sentences al-Awlaki in Absentia."
The Washington Post writes, in an article entitled, "Yemen Convicts Al-Qaida Agent in Frenchman's Death:"
It's the first formal legal action by Yemen against al-Awlaki. Washington has pressured Sanaa to crack down on al-Awlaki, whose sermons advocating holy war against America have influenced militants involved in several attacks or attempted attacks on U.S. soil.
