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Charge sheet: Allegations against Hicks

March 02, 2007

A CHARGE sheet released by the US Defence Department lists alleged meetings between David Hicks and al-Qa'ida associates, including Osama bin Laden, in Afghanistan before and after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York and Washington DC.

The allegations include:

- In early 2001 Hicks travelled to Afghanistan and stayed in an "al-Qa'ida guest house". At the house he met with associates or members of al-Qa'ida, including Richard Reid, later dubbed the "shoe bomber" after his failed attempt to blow up a passenger jet over the Atlantic Ocean in December 2001.

- Hicks then attended an eight-week basic training course at al-Qa'ida's al Farouq camp in Afghanistan. The course included "weapons familiarisation and firing, land mines, tactics, topography, field movements, basic explosives and other areas".

- Around April 2001, Hicks returned to al Farouq and trained "in al-Qa'ida's guerilla warfare and mountain tactics training course". The course included "marksmanship; small team tactics; ambush; camouflage; rendezvous techniques; and techniques to pass intelligence to al-Qa'ida operatives".

- While at the al Farouq camp, al-Qa'ida leader Osama bin Laden visited the camp on several occasions and "during one visit Hicks expressed to bin Laden his concern over the lack of English al-Qa'ida training material".

- After completing the two training courses, Muhammad Atef, then al-Qa'ida's military commander, summoned Hicks and he was interviewed about his knowledge of bin Laden and among other things, "his ability to travel around the world" including to Israel and "his willingness to go on a martyr mission".

- Around August 2001 Hicks conducted surveillance on the American and British embassies in Kabul.

- On or about September 12, 2001, he left Pakistan after watching TV footage of the September 11 terrorist attacks to return to Afghanistan "and, again joined with al-Qa'ida".

- Hicks reported to al-Qa'ida deputy military commander Saif al Adel, who was organising al-Qa'ida forces at locations in Afghanistan where US, coalition and Northern Alliance forces were expected to be. Hicks "chose to join a group of al-Qa'ida fighters near Kandahar Airport".

- Hicks was issued an AK-47 automatic rifle and "armed himself with six ammunition magazines, 300 rounds of ammunition and three grenades to use in fighting the US, Northern Alliance and other coalition forces".

- On October 7, 2001, the coalition bombing campaign began and about three days later Hicks was re-assigned to guard a tank outside Kandahar airport.

- Hicks attempted to train some other fighters positioned with him at Kandahar with tactics he had learned with al-Qa'ida.

- Hicks agreed to go to the front lines of the war in Konduz.

- On or about November 9, 2001, Hicks spent about two hours on the front line at Konduz "before it collapsed and he was forced to flee".

- Hicks moved "secretly" to an "Arab safe house" in Konduz.

- Around December 2001, Northern Alliance forces captured Hicks in Baghlan, Afghanistan.

The material support charge against Hicks has two specifications.

The first specification reads Hicks did "intentionally provide material support or resources to an international terrorist organisation engaged in hostilities against the United States, namely al-Qa'ida, which the accused knew to be such an organisation that engaged, or engages, in terrorism, and, that the conduct of the accused took place in the context of and was associated with an armed conflict, namely al-Qa'ida, or its associated forces against the US or its coalition partners".

The second specification reads Hicks did "provide material support or resources to be used in preparation for, or in carrying out, an act of terrorism, that the accused knew or intended that the material support or resources were to be used for those purposes, that the conduct of the accused took place in the context of and was associated with an armed conflict, namely al-Qa'ida or its associated forces against the US or its coalition partners."

The attempted murder charge that was dropped today alleged Hicks attempted to "commit murder in violation of the law of war by directing small arms fire, explosives or other means and methods with the intent to kill" members of the US, coalition and Northern Alliance.

AAP

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