SPAIN: MADRID BOMBINGS TRIAL WILL AGGRAVATE POLITICAL INFIGHTING

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: FOIA Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0005556586
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: June 24, 2015
• Document Release Date: September 2, 2010
• Case Number: F-2010-00504
• Publication Date: February 15, 2007

APPROVED FOR RELEASED
DATE: 08-31-2010 f
Article
Spain: Madrid Bombings Trial Will Aggravate Political Infighting
OFFICE OF RUSSIAN AND EUROPEAN ANALYSIS
Some center-right politicians, with an eye toward the national election
expected next year, are likely to use the trial starting today of 29
defendants accused of perpetrating the 11 March 2004 Madrid train
bombings to discredit the Spanish Socialist Workers Party (PSOE)
government. Vocal members of the opposition center-right Popular Party (PP)
persist in blaming the Basque terrorist group ETA for the bombing and in
pursuing conspiracy theories about the 1 1-M attacks, as they are called in Spain,
even though the investigative judge dismissed any ETA connection in his 1,500-
page report that served as the basis for the charges, and Spanish police and
judicial officials have seen no evidence to back
PP claims. Most observers judge the PP lost the last election-held just
three days after the 2004 attacks-in part because it was determined to
fault ETA.
- Some PP members and conservative media sources allege the PSOE
government or its supporters in law enforcement and intelligence
mishandled or suppressed evidence that points to ETA involvement. Some
go so far as to claim the Socialists and their allies in the security services
condoned the 11 -M plot because it would give PSOE the 2004 election.
- A poll conducted last week by a local firm using sound polling methods
showed about 30 percent of Spaniards believe ETA played a role in the
attacks and about 30 percent doubt the trial will bring justice to the 11 -M
case, views that the PP strategy probably has encouraged.
- The trial itself is likely to prolong the controversy and could give new
ammunition to PP supporters-media observers speculate defense
attorneys will use components of conspiracy theories to muddle the
prosecution's case. PP leaders publicly suggested last month that the
court's decision to allow three ETA members to testify as witnesses for one
defendant validated the party's concerns about the 11-M investigation.
A review of Spanish media during the past several years indicates that the
rancor over the 11-M attacks is poisoning the domestic atmosphere and
appears to be polarizing the electorate. Press reports suggest trial arguments
will end this summer with a verdict in the fall, but appeals are almost certain to
keep the 11 -M issue in the public eye through a national election expected no
later than March 2008.
15 February 2007 . "kli
 Article Spain: Madrid Bombings Trial Will Aggravate... Continued
- The 11 -M issue has been a major source of the pervasive crispacion-or
bad blood-between the PP and PSOE and probably has contributed to an
erosion in Spanish public regard for politicians, which Spanish
commentators claim is among the lowest in Europe. They say the
parliament's 11-M commission is widely seen as failing to achieve the
bipartisanship and independence of the US 9/11 Commission and has
contributed to the gulf between politicians and the public.
- Some pundits say the conspiracy theories-some of which implicate the
judiciary or law enforcement-are also discrediting state institutions. At the
two-year anniversary of 11 -M in 2006 even the conservative ABC
newspaper accused the PP of irresponsible judgment aimed at
"delegitimizing" the law.
15 February 2007 SEGR
 Spain: Troubled Aftermath of 11 March Attacks
lot AA
ion
Controversy has plagued Spain's attempts
to investigate the 11-M attacks.
The multiparty parliamentary commission formed to
investigate the attacks quickly degenerated into a
partisan forum that made only minor recommendations
in its final report, issued in 2005. The Association of
Madrid Bombings Victims boycotted memorial events
that year, saying the pain of victims and relatives was
being used for political gain.
Investigative magistrate Juan del Olmo was
criticized by some victims and relatives for the slow
pace of the judicial process. Moreover, around
one-fifth of Spaniards do not trust the investigation
by del Olmo and the lead prosecutor, according to a
poll conducted last week by a local firm using sound
polling methods.
? Although indictments were filed against 29 people
in April 2006-after an investigation targeting 116
potential defendants, 80,000 pieces of evidence, and
200 DNA tests--Spanish officials still do not have a
full understanding of how the attacks were organized
and by whom, (The
indictment reportedly found that the bombings were
inspired by, but had no direct links to, al-Qa'ida.)
- Conspiracy theories abound. In addition to those
involving ETA or the PSOE, other theories assert
that Moroccan security agencies instigated the
bombings in revenge for a conflict between Spain
and Morocco over a disputed island in 2003. F-
 Spain: Madrid Bombings Trial at a Glance
lip ? ~ S
Of the 29 individuals on trial, seven face
potential sentences of more than 38,000 years
in prison each, although under Spanish law,
the maximum time anyone can spend behind
bars is 40 years. Spain does not have the
death penalty.
Jamal Zougam, age 33, Moroccan; Abdelmajid
Bouchar, age 24, Moroccan; and Basel
Ghalyoun, age 26, Syrian, are accused of
planting the bombs.
RabeiOsman el Sayed Ahmed, age 35,
Egyptian; Youssef Belhadj, age 30, Moroccan;
and Hassan el Haski, age 43, Moroccan, are
considered three of the ideologues behind
the bombings.
Jose Emilio Suarez Trashorras, age 30,
Spanish, Is accused of facilitating the attacks
by providing explosives.
The other 22 defendants-comprising suspected Islamic terrorists and
Spaniards alleged to have been involved in explosives trafficking-face lesser
charges for supporting roles in the attacks.
? One person thus far has been convicted for his role in the attacks: a teenager
in 2004 was sentenced to six years in youth detention for the transport of
explosives.
? Seven purported ringleaders-one Tunisian, one Algerian, and five
Moroccans-blew themselves up, also killing a police officer, when police
tried to raid their apartment in April 2004. Three other suspects are believed
to have fled Spain, according to press reports, while another is believed to
have been killed in Iraq. In early January, Spanish authorities arrested another
six individuals who may have collaborated in the Madrid attacks, according to
press reports.
A three judge panel under lead trial judge Javier Gomez Bermudez-who
presided over a trial in 2005 that convicted Spanish al-Qa`ida cell leader lmad
Eddin Barakat Yarkas and 17 others-will hear the case. There are no Juries in
Spanish terrorism trials. The trial will begin with statements from the accused,
who can be questioned by lawyers. As many as 650 witnesses and 100 experts
will then testify.