TRIAL of ALLEGED MUSLIM EXTREMISTS IN SERBIA

UNCLAS BELGRADE 000167

SIPDIS

DOJ FOR CARL ALEXANDRE

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM KIRF ASEC PTER SR US
SUBJECT: TRIAL of ALLEGED MUSLIM EXTREMISTS IN SERBIA

REF: A) 2007 BELGRADE 1627 B) 2007 BELGRADE 1394 C) 2007 BELGRADE
1392

Summary
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1. (SBU) The trial of 14 Muslims from Serbia's Sandzak region on
charges of terrorism and related charges began on January 14.
According to the indictment, the group was planning attacks on the
U.S. Embassy and other sites in Belgrade and Novi Pazar, as well as
the murder of an Islamic religious leader. In their opening
statements, defendants claimed to be peaceful worshippers who
established a camp in the mountains because they were not welcome in
any local mosques. Although the group does not appear to have any
ties to the broader Islamic community, the trial underscores the
Serbian government's need to address disenchantment and economic and
social dislocation of its Muslim citizens. End Summary.

Police Find Evidence of Planned Attacks
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2. (U) The trial of 14 Muslims from the Sandzak region on charges of
terrorism, illegal possession of firearms, conspiracy to commit
unconstitutional activity and attempted murder, in the Organized
Crime Department of the Belgrade District Court (Special Court)
began on January 14. A fifteenth defendant is awaiting extradition
from France. The court is investigating an additional five
individuals. Of those five, police arrested three in September
2007, one remains at large, and one is under house arrest in Kosovo,
pending investigation by the UNMIK prosecutor.


3. (SBU) Police arrested the defendants, all Serbian citizens, who
were living in a mountain camp in Sandzak near the city of Novi
Pazar, in March 2007. Police had discovered the camp in the
mountains in Sandzak while conducting routine operations. According
to the indictment, police found weapons and evidence that the group
was planning attacks on the Novi Pazar police, the hospital, and
water and electricity stations; as well as attacks on several sites
in Belgrade. (The investigative judge and special prosecutor told
Legal Advisor and regional Legatt that police found a map of
Belgrade on a computer, with the locations of the U.S. Embassy,
National Theater, and Hotel Park marked.) In addition, the
indictment accuses the group of plotting the murder of Mufti Muamer
Zukorlic, the leader of Serbian Islamic Community, though his
authority has been challenged in the past few months by a rival
mufti (reftels).

The Investigation
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4. (SBU) Since the case met the definition of organized crime, the
Special Prosecutor for Organized Crime requested the transfer of the
case from Novi Pazar to his jurisdiction. The police and prosecutor
conducted the investigation professionally, and the prosecutor is
proceeding based on the evidence police collected. The prosecution
does not appear to be politically motivated. The FBI, through the
Embassy, has been assisting the investigation and is analyzing some
of the evidence seized, including the computer hard drive and a
movie celebrating terrorism. Interior Ministry official Radoslav
Djinovic told Legal Advisor that the Ministry had created an
anti-terror department based in Belgrade to deal with such
investigations in the future.

Defendants Claim to be Peaceful Worshippers While Attacking the
United States
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5. (U) Although the media and politicians have called the group
"Wahhabi," the group are self-professed Ahl-i ("righteous") Sunni
Muslims, and neither the prosecutor nor the defense have used the
term "Wahhabi," which the defendants said they considered offensive.
In their opening statements, six of the defendants pled not guilty
and stated the weapons were for self-defense, as they felt
threatened by Mufti Zukorlic's supporters. The defendants said they
did not recognize the authority of either Mufti Zukorlic or the
rival Mufti Adem Zilkic. They claimed the camp was a place of
worship, since they could not practice in mosques, all of which
aligned with Zukorlic or Zilkic.


6. (U) Contrary to their peaceful claims, the defendants attacked
the United States Government for orchestrating the trial. One
defendant, Senad Ramovic, said that "Bush and CIA agent Zukorlic"
had written the indictment. Ramovic accused "Americans and Jews" of
conducting the 9/11 attacks to blame Muslims. Adnan Hot said, "We
know who the terrorists are, it is Bush and the U.S. Army." Fuad
Hodzic said, "The U.S. Embassy will suffer punishment from Allah."

Defendants Not Related to Islamic Community Split
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7. (SBU) The activities of this group do not appear to be related to
the split in the Islamic community, although Novi Pazar mayor,
Sulejman Ugljanin continues to make allegations that Zukorlic is
involved. Ugljanin previously told DCM that Zukorlic was a
"murderer" (ref B). Ugljanin supports Zilkic, and his attempts to
tie Zukorlic to the trial are not unexpected. The press in Novi
Pazar--heavily influenced by the mayor's office--in the past has
published numerous claims that Zukorlic was supporting terrorists.
Ugljanin's chief of staff, Fikret Niksic, told poloff on January 20
that Zukorlic was supporting extremists. As evidence, Niksic
referred to the firing range supposedly located in the private
university that Zukorlic founded and where he is president. In
separate meetings on January 20, both Zukorlic and Zilkic told
poloff that they opposed violence and extremism.

Trial Will Continue in April
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8. (U) Trials at the Special Court are normally scheduled for just a
few days at a time, because the Special Court has only one courtroom
equipped for multi-defendant trials, which is shared by all war
crimes and organized crime cases. A high-profile trial normally
lasts over a year as a result. Only six of the defendants had time
to present their cases before the trial recessed after January 18.
The next session is scheduled for April 7-18, and the remaining
defendants will speak then.

Comment
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9. (SBU) Government officials and the media have a thin
understanding of the Islamic communities in the country, and the
political rift between the two Islamic leaders' supporters
complicates this. The tendency in the capital to dismiss all
Muslims in Sandzak as "those Wahhabis" does nothing to address the
real problems of political and economic marginalization of this
region. While Sandzak does not appear to be a hotbed of terrorist
activity, extremists such as the defendants in this case appear to
be, could capitalize on this marginalization. End Comment.

BRUSH