High court upholds death sentence of Jarallah’s murderer [Archives:2005/891/Front Page]

SANA'A- Oct.30- The High Court for Repeal, upheld the death sentence in the first instance on Ali Alsa'awani, murderer of Jarallah Omer, General Secretary of Yemeni Socialist Party. Sa'awani assassinated Jarrallah after Jarallah had given his speech in the Conference hall during the third general conference of the Islah party on 28 December 2002,

Following the ruling announcement, at the end of the month of Ramadan, lawyer Dr. Mohamed Almikhlafi, head of the follow up committee of Jarallah's assassination case, told the media that the high court had upheld the ruling of the first instance and appeal court. It ignored other requests that the lawyers of Jarralah have submitted. He added that it had even ignored the appeal court's instructions to interrogate the accused ones who were not questioned.

Mikhlafi, head of the legal circle of the Socialist Party, considered the method with which the ruling was issued to be in compliance with the resolution of the government. He pointed out that the resolution represents the government's efforts to hide the facts behind the assassination, which is known to all to have been politically motivated. There is an ongoing effort to conceal the organization that carried out the assassination.

It is worth mentioning that the ruling was surprised by the committees' methods. The prosecution was expecting the ruling during the month of Shaban. It has been issued at the end of Ramadan, close to the Eid vacation. He added that they were not notified with the outcome of the ruling and that the media did not cover it. This was also the case with the first instance and appeal ruling.

Almikhlafi said that the avoidance of announcing the ruling through the media reflects the authority's desire to avoid reactions because of their attitude in considering the case as penal.

Alsa'awani assassinated the Socialist leader before 4000 representatives of the Islah Party and hundreds of their guests. This happened in the opening session of the conference in the presence of the party leaders and foreign and Arab diplomats.

The assassin admitted that he targeted Jarallah because he was the engineer of rapprochement between the Socialists and the Islah, the biggest parties in the Joint Meeting Parties, and former enemies.

He also confessed that he targeted the Islah because of their rapprochement with what he called the 'seculars'.
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