October 05, 2008	Sunday	Shawwal 05, 1429

NEW YORK, Oct 4: A US federal appeals court in New York has overturned the conviction of two Yemenis who were tried on the charge of supporting Al Qaeda, officials said on Saturday.

The second US circuit court of appeals overturned the conviction of Sheik Mohmmed Ali Al Moayad and Mohammed Zayed, who had been sentenced to 75 and 45 years in jail respectively, on Thursday.

Following the ruling, the two men — who were arrested in Germany in 2003 and extradited to the United States — were put under the jurisdiction of another judge and could be retried.

The appeals court said Al-Moayad, 60, and Zayed, 34, were convicted of financial support for Al Qaeda and the Palestinian group Hamas based on “highly inflammatory and irrelevant” testimony of third parties who unfairly influenced the jury.

—AFP