Ahmad Abdullah Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — A judge at the special penal court in Riyadh on Saturday granted more time to the public prosecutor to present his case against a Saudi academic standing trial on terrorism-related charges. The judge set the next hearing to Nov. 15 (Muharram 1, 1434). The defendant did not appear at Saturday's court session, which was attended by defense lawyers and one of the academic's sons. Reporters and a representative of the Human Rights Commission were also present. The appeals court had repealed a preliminary verdict issued on Feb. 19, 2012, against the Saudi who was accused of supporting Al-Qaeda terrorist network, embracing the Takfiri ideology of the Kharijites that contravenes the Holy Qur'an, the Prophet's Sunnah and the consensus of the Ulema, inciting others against the Ulema in the country and terror funding operations. The appeals court judge threw out the case saying he was not convinced by the evidence presented by the prosecution, which included mainly testimonies by convicted prisoners who were eager to shift blame. The prosecutor challenged the ruling and demanded a retrial.
