Jewish museum 'was terror target'
 |
The Jewish Museum in Berlin was one of two terror targets, Abdellah testified.
Story Tools
SPECIAL REPORT
|
|
|
DUSSELDORF, Germany (CNN) -- A Jordanian man claiming an association with Osama bin Laden has testified that he and members of a radical Palestinian group plotted attacks against Berlin's Jewish Museum and a Jewish-run discotheque in Dusseldorf.
Shadi Abdellah, 26, said testified Friday that he and members of Al Tawhid -- a Sunni Muslim Palestinian organization linked to al Qaeda -- visited both sites and considered using car bombs or grenades.
The testimony appeared to come as a surprise to prosecutors, who indicated they were not aware of plots against the specific targets.
Abdellah was arrested along with eight other people in April 2002 on suspicion they were planning terrorist attacks in Berlin and Dusseldorf.
Abdellah said he agreed to work for the Al Tawhid network after meeting Abu Musab al Zarqawi, an associate of bin Laden, in Afghanistan.
Abdellah also claimed to have been bin Laden's bodyguard for a short time.
He said he attended three al Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan where he learned how to build and use explosives and chemical weapons. One of the camps was run by a deputy for bin Laden, Abdellah said.
He came to Germany to seek out possible sites for terrorist attacks, he said.
Abdellah is charged with belonging to a terrorist group and falsifying passports. He faces up to 10 years in prison.
-- From CNN Producer Claudia Otto in Berlin
