KUWAIT HIGH COURT REVERSES GUILTY VERDICT OF

UNCLAS KUWAIT 004582 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ARP, S/CT E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PTER PREL PGOV PHUM KU TERRORISM SUBJECT: KUWAIT HIGH COURT REVERSES GUILTY VERDICT OF GUANTANAMO RETURNEE REF: A. KUWAIT 3055 ¶B. KUWAIT 4429 ¶1. On December 5, Kuwait's highest court, the Court of Cassation, overturned the guilty verdict of Nasser Najar Al-Mutairi, the first Kuwaiti returned from detention at Guantanamo Naval Base. The high court reversed the guilty verdict and the five year sentence handed down by the Court of Appeals on November 1, 2005. The Court of Appeals decision followed Al-Mutairi's trial court aquittal on June 15, 2005 of charges of joining an illegal terrorist organization, joining the armed forces of a foreign country and carrying out hostile acts against another country. Al-Mutairi was released from state custody on November 7, 2006 pending issuance of a final verdict by the high court. (Reftel B). ¶2. The decision by the Court of Cassation represents the last step in the judicial process and there are no further appeals possible. ********************************************* * For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/?cable s Visit Kuwait's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ ********************************************* * LEBARON