Terror propaganda over the internet: Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland brings charges against two brothers

Bern, 01.10.2012 - The starting situation behind the case being investigated by the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland is the setting up and involvement in a criminal terrorist organisation belonging to the Al-Qaida network. The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland is now bringing this case before court and is filing charges against two Kurdish brothers who originally came from Iraq. They are being accused of being members of a criminal organisation with terrorist objectives that is headed by Najmuddin Faraj Ahmad alias Mullah Krekar, the founder and former leader of the terrorist organisation Ansar al Islam.

According to the charge sheet, a new terrorist organisation was set up and is being led by Mullah Krekar. The elder of the two brothers was also involved in this. The structure and senior members of the organisation is being kept secret. This organisation, which was intended to act as a permanent support organisation within the Al-Qaida network, operates a variety of internet platforms dedicated to the distribution of propaganda for terrorist attacks and the messages of the Al-Qaida network. It also maintains open and closed chat-rooms in the form of virtual conference rooms and contact forums for potential and active sympathisers, supporters and members of this new organisation as well as of other terrorist organisations belonging to the Al-Qaida network. Furthermore, the organisation also distributes magazines and books, and by this means collects money to support its objectives. The newly founded organisation is alleged to have members in several European countries. According to the information of the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland, its aim is to pursue and realise the purpose of the Al-Qaida network, and consequently by means of violent crimes to achieve the worldwide establishment of the Islamic Caliphate based on Sharia law.

The newly-founded terrorist organisation is alleged to pursue a multileveled strategy to attract new members and supporters, and by this means to strengthen the existing organisations of the Al-Qaida network as well. The first level consists of attracting interested parties via the various Salafist-Jihadist internet platforms, and to encourage them to participate actively in the form of postings and commentaries. In a second level these individuals are checked by Mullah Krekar and the senior officers of the new organisation, whose members also include the older brother, in terms of their commitment to the Jihadist-Salafist cause. Those who are considered trustworthy are then granted access to the organisation's closed chat-rooms. These chat-rooms facilitate closer contact with the organisation's senior officers. Access to the third level - and consequently to knowledge about the organisation's strategy and its internal management and decision-making structure - is reserved exclusively for the inner leadership circle of the organisation.

Involvement of the persons who are the subject of accusations being brought by the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland

According to the charge sheet, the elder of the two brothers is alleged to hold a number of key positions within the newly-founded organisation. Specifically, he is accused of having set up a web forum as well as a number of websites and chat-rooms for the organisation in close collaboration with Mullah Krekar, of operating these and of having partially financed them. Furthermore, he is in particular being accused of having passed messages between Mullah Krekar and armed terrorist groups in Iraq that are affiliated to Al-Qaida. He is also alleged to have been in direct contact with their representatives, and to have received video messages about terrorist attacks committed by these groups, and to have published and commented on these in the web forum of the new organisation.

According to the charge sheet, the younger of the two brothers is alleged to have actively participated in the internet platforms and chat-rooms which his brother operated for the new criminal organisation, in full knowledge of its terrorist goals. He exercised a number of functions there, and also wrote texts of his own illustrated by means of corresponding images. He is consequently being charged with having of his own volition contributed towards the pursuit and enforcement of the purpose of the Al-Qaida network.

According to the charges, both of the accused parties are alleged to have drawn up and published a large number of contributions under a variety of user names, specifically on the web forum of the new terrorist organisation. In terms of content, this concerned the dissemination of terrorist attacks by extremist Islamic organisations, such as inter alia by Al-Qaida itself as well as by Ansar al Islam. This also included appeals and messages from Al-Qaida representatives such as Osama bin Laden and Ayman al Zawahiri. Furthermore, they are alleged on a number of occasions to have downloaded videos from foreign websites showing the brutal execution of defenceless persons, and to have stored these on their computers.

Investigations conducted by the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland have revealed that both brothers dedicated a large proportion of their time to the service of the newly-founded criminal organisation. Their actions significantly influenced the structure and the functioning of the organisation headed by Mullah Krekar. The two Kurds were granted asylum following their entry into Switzerland, and were recognised as refugees. Appeals are currently pending before the Federal Administrative Court against the revocation of the decision to grant them asylum and the withdrawal of recognition of their refugee status.  

The individuals who are the subject of the accusations levied by the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland will now be required to defend themselves before the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona. The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland has brought charges on the grounds of suspected participation in and support of a criminal organisation (Art. 260ter of the Swiss Criminal Code - "StGB"), on the grounds of suspected public incitement to commit crime or violence (Art. 259 StGB) and depictions of violence (Art. 135 Para. 1 StGB) as well as on the grounds of falsification of documents and further offences.

The accused persons are to be presumed innocent until proved guilty. Following the submission of the indictment, responsibility for informing the media lies with the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona.


Address for enquiries

Jacqueline Buehlmann, Deputy Spokeswoman OAG, +41 31 324 32 40, info@ba.admin.ch



Publisher

Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland
http://www.ba.admin.ch/

https://www.admin.ch/content/gov/en/start/dokumentation/medienmitteilungen.msg-id-46175.html