RADICAL ISLAMIST ACQUITTED OF DAMAGING KUWAITI

1. (U) Influential Kuwaiti Muslim fundamentalist Jaber
al-Jalahma was acquitted on December 17 of charges of
&damaging military preparations for the defense of the
country8 by publicly praising the attackers who shot and
killed a U.S. Marine on October 8 as heroes and martyrs.



2. (U) In the short, two-day trial, the court found that the
defendant,s expression of his personal views had not harmed
the interests of the State of Kuwait and that there was a
lack of material facts surrounding the accusations. &What
the suspect had said about the Failaka shooting incident is
personal opinion in which he expressed his point of view on
the two assailants,8 it added.



3. (U) After the trial, al-Jalahma,s lawyers said they will
file suit against the Ministry of Interior and the State
Security Department for the psychological, social and
material stress they claim their client was subjected to.



4. (S) Comment: Jalahma's acquittal is a disappointment.
He is one of Kuwait's most notable and virulent
anti-Americans, and this decision will certainly be
interpreted as a complete "victory" for him and his political
Islamist allies. MoI Assistant Undersecretary Ahmad
al-Rujaib, one of the key people in the operations division,
told charge December 18 that the decision was a gift to the
Islamists. Rujaib understood clearly that Jalahma's real
goal is to transform Kuwaiti society, and that his attacks
against the United States are only the first step in clearing
the way for that negative transformation. This, particularly
if it is coupled with a similar ruling on accused Islamist
Mohammed al-Mulaifi later this month, has already sent a
demoralizing shiver through the law enforcment community.
End Comment.
URBANCIC