NEW YORK: Sulaiman Abu Ghaith, a son-in-law of Osama bin Laden who once served as a spokesman for Al Qaeda, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in federal court in Manhattan on Friday morning, where he was charged with conspiracy to kill Americans. Abu Ghaith appeared before Judge Lewis A. Kaplan of US District Court in Lower Manhattan, only blocks from the site of the 9/11 terror attack.

Abu Ghaith was dressed in a blue prison smock, barely spoke aside from some one-word replies to questions from the judge during the 20-minute arraignment. His lawyer pleaded not guilty on his behalf. Federal prosecutors asked that Abu Ghaith remain in custody. His lawyer did not challenge the request, but left open the possibility of making a bail application later.

Abu Ghaith was arrested in Jordan on Wednesday and brought to New York to face terrorism-related charges.

Exactly how the US captured Abu Ghaith is still unclear. The case many legal experts say marks a legal victory for the Obama administration, which has long sought to charge senior Al Qaeda suspects. In American federal courts instead of holding them at the military detention centre at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. But it immediately sparked an outcry from Republicans in Congress who do not want high-threat terror suspects brought to the US.

“Human Rights First praised the decision to bring Abu Ghaith to federal court.” Our nation’s track record of successfully prosecuting alleged terrorists in federal court is second to none,” said Human Rights First’s Raha Wala.

“Federal prosecutors chose to bring Mr Abu Ghaith before a federal court because they know this is where this case belongs. That decision underscores the confidence Americans should have in our tried and true system of justice and its ability to handle these complex cases.”