Religions > Atheism > News: Was Moussaoui fuelled by Religious Extremism, or a broken home?
| Topic: |
Religions > Atheism |
| User: |
"Michael Gray" |
| Date: |
18 Apr 2006 03:35:16 AM |
| Object: |
News: Was Moussaoui fuelled by Religious Extremism, or a broken home? |
Moussaoui 'came from broken home'
"Al-Qaeda plotter Zacarias Moussaoui came from a broken home where his
mother was repeatedly beaten, a US court in Virginia has been told.
Behavioural specialist Jan Vogelsang also said that there was a
history of mental illness in Moussaoui's family.
She was speaking as an expert witness for the defence at a hearing to
determine whether Moussaoui should be executed or imprisoned for life.
He has already been convicted over his role in the 11 September 2001
attacks.
'Dirty Arab' insults
Moussaoui, a French citizen of Moroccan descent, is the only person
convicted in the US in connection with the attacks.
Moussaoui was in jail in Minnesota at the time, but in an earlier
phase of the trial prosecutors successfully argued that he had kept
federal agents from identifying and stopping some of the hijackers.
At the start of her testimony, Ms Vogelsang said that she was not
trying to excuse Moussaoui's actions, but rather to help explain why
he did what he did.
Ms Vogelsang said Moussaoui had been in and out of orphanages during
the first six years of his life and, as a teenager in France, was
rejected by the family of his long-term girlfriend as a "dirty Arab".
Ms Vogelsang also said that Moussaoui's mother, Aicha el-Wafi, was
physically abused throughout her pregnancies, including six before
Moussaoui was born.
Defence lawyers trying to persuade jurors to spare Moussaoui's life
argue there is evidence that he is mentally ill.
They also claim he had a limited role in the 11 September plot and his
execution would only fulfil his dream of martyrdom.
On Thursday Moussaoui told his sentencing trial that he had "no
regret, no remorse" for the attacks on Washington and New York in
which nearly 3,000 were killed.
Shoe-bomber testimony
Ms Vogelsang took the stand after a closed session with Judge Leonie
Brinkema.
The defence had been expected to call "shoe-bomber" Richard Reid -
serving a life sentence for attempting to blow up a trans-Atlantic
flight - to the stand.
But, on Friday, Judge Brinkema annulled an order compelling Reid to
appear. The jury may now hear a written statement instead.
Moussaoui has said that he and Reid were going to hijack a fifth plane
on 11 September 2001 and fly it into the White House.
Lawyers for Moussaoui have suggested he fabricated the story about a
fifth plane to sabotage his defence and that he is seeking to inflate
his role in history.
The judge has said jurors could be sent out for deliberations this
week.
The prosecution wrapped up its case on Wednesday, after presenting the
jury with emotional evidence from the 11 September attacks.
A number of victims' relatives took the stand to describe how the
attacks had affected their lives. The jury also heard a chilling
cockpit recording from inside one of the four hijacked US airliners.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/4915722.stm
Published: 2006/04/17 18:13:06 GMT
© BBC MMVI"
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