October 3, 2008 | Read Time: 1 minute
On the Crime Blog, Jason Trahan, a reporter for the Dallas Morning News, is following the retrial of five men affiliated with the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, a Muslim charity based outside Dallas accused of supporting the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
A previous case ended last year in a mistrial after jurors were deadlocked on charges against the defendants. Prosecutors charge the five men raised more than $12-million to support terrorism. The defense says there is no evidence that private donations went to finance violent activities.
Mr. Trahan this week writes that the judge decided to allow the jury to see videos produced for the Holy Land fund that feature a controversial Palestinian cleric, who is reportedly a spiritual mentor to Osama bin Laden.
While the videos were not found at Holy Land’s offices, a prosecutor “argued that the advertisements were authentic because they were found among many other documents and videos naming the defendants and showing them interacting with Hamas leaders. They are relevant to the case because they show that the defendants were not merely a charity, as they claim, but rather Hamas’ designated fund-raising arm,” Mr. Trahan writes.
However, a defense lawyer “said there is no proof the defendants had anything to do with producing them. Besides, she said, the videos were made well before support of Hamas was outlawed in the U.S. in 1995. Also, she said, the government just wants another opportunity to mention Osama bin Laden,” Mr. Trahan writes.
