Home in Mauritania's largest trial in the history of the country Salafists.
(Updated with a condemnation of the accused) Nouakchott, Mauritania May 16 .- start now the largest trial of suspected Islamist Salafists in the history of the country and the first since coming to power of President Mohamed Ould Abdelaziz after the August coup 2008, judicial sources told .
The beginning of the process took place amid tight security, with the first deployment of police dogs at the, sto energy credits, entrance and inside the Palace of Justice, in addition to armed guards to the courtroom and that the prohibition family and the press enter the hall with electronic devices.
For the first time also in the history of Mauritanian Justice install an iron cage to imprison the accused for his appearance and prevent leakage which starred, in April 2008, Sidi Ould Sidna,, gods and heroes gold, one of those involved in the murder of four French tourists in December 2007.
The only one that was presented today before the judge was Abdelahi Sidiya Ould Mohamed, suspected of being linked to the terrorist organization Al Qaeda, and who was accused of "participation in a group created with the aim of committing terrorist acts.", sto credits,
The Court also ordered Sidiya, who denied all charges claiming that their testimony before the police were obtained under torture, to six years' imprisonment and forced labor, and a fine of 2.5 million uguiyas (7739 euros) .
In the various cases included in the process started today, the Criminal Division of the Court of First Instance of Nouakchott has scheduled the hearing of 21 people, the most anticipated of which are the three alleged murderers of four French tourists.
This is Mohamed Ould Chabarnoux, Maaruv Heiber and Ould Ould Sidna, arrested between January and April 2008 following the attack in the town of Aleg, about 260 kilometers southeast of the capital.
The current trial does not, however, those responsible for the kidnapping of three Spaniards in November 2009, and an Italian couple in December of that year.
The alleged perpetrator of the kidnapping of the three Spaniards, Hame Ould Sid 'Ahmed Ould Omar, better known as Omar Sahrawi, was indicted by prosecutors in Nouakchott of this crime in March.
Prosecutors had announced in April that the majority of Salafis who are awaiting trial in Mauritania appear before the Court this May, and expressed his determination to ensure a fair and fast after the closure of investigations.
Its onset is about three months after the dialogue held between a committee of Imams (scholars of Islam) and Salafist prisoners in jail in Nouakchott, who authorities said was closed with the commitment of most prisoners to abandon extremism.