Mishal Al-Otaibi Okaz/Saudi Gazette RIYADH — The court of appeals overturned the preliminary verdict against a Saudi academic accused of supporting the Al-Qaeda network. In its verdict on Feb. 19, the criminal court had cleared the suspect of the charges. The appeals court has asked the academic to appear in court for a retrial after the prosecutors accused him of supporting Al-Qaeda operations, embracing the Kharijite beliefs of expiating Sunnah and the consensus of Salafists, advocating against scholars in the country and financial terrorism. The judge decided to close the arguments and set the case for sentencing. The court was not convinced of the evidence presented by the prosecutor, which did not invalidate the original verdict. The defendant accepted the verdict, while the prosecutor requested a copy of the ruling to submit an objection to the appeals court.
