[AP] Larry Neumeister - A wealthy arms dealer long suspected of aiding militants in some of the world's bloodiest conflicts was convicted Thursday of conspiring to sell weapons to informants who posed as arms suppliers for terrorists willing to kill Americans. Syrian-born Monzer al-Kassar, 62, and a co-defendant, Luis Felipe Moreno Godoy, were convicted of conspiring to try to sell heavy weaponry to Colombian militants. An indictment said al-Kassar had provided military equipment to known terrorist organizations determined to stage "attacks on United States interests and United States nationals." Al-Kassar was acquitted in Spain of supplying assault rifles used by Palestinian militants in the 1985 hijacking of the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro. The hijackers killed 69-year-old New Yorker Leon Klinghoffer, dumping his body and wheelchair overboard. Klinghoffer's daughters were in court for Thursday's conviction.
2008-11-21 01:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive