Jordan convicts 15 persons of cases pertinent to al-Qaida, Ansar al-Islam

The state security court in Jordan convicted in absentia some 14 persons of conspiring to attack American and Israeli interests in the country, as well as targeting officials in the state's intelligence.

The court sentences the only detained person, the convicted person number 15 -- called Ahmad Muhammad Saleh al-Reyati ( of the Jordanian nationality )-- for 15 year imprisonment, a period reduced to 7 years.

Judicial sources said that investigations revealed that al-Reyati ( 34 year old) is the master mind for the group which is linked to al-Qaida organization and Ansar al-Islam group.

The list of accusation said that al-Qaida organization and Ansar al-Islam group recruited al-Reyati and his group to launch attacks described as terrorist against American and Israeli interests and to target western tourists and assassinate officials in the Jordanian intelligence.

The court sentences 8 of the groups which included 13 Jordanians and two Iraqis, sentences in absentia of 15 years imprisonment with labor. Among the convicted persons who were tried in absentia was al-Mulla Kreikar, the founder of Ansar al-Islam groups in Iraq's Kurdistan.

The court officially dropped accusations against the other 6, noting that they were killed but gave no explanation to the implications of their killing. However, military sources said they were killed in fighting with the American occupation forces in Iraq.