AMMAN — The State Security Court (SSC) on Wednesday sentenced nine men, who were charged with manufacturing explosive substances, to prison terms ranging from 15 to three years in prison for their involvement in plots targeting Jordan’s national security.

 

Four other defendants who were standing trial on charges related to manufacturing drones were acquitted by the SSC for lack of evidence.

 

The 13 defendants were part of 17 men whom the General Intelligence Department (GID) stated in mid-April of this year of planning to cause chaos and manufacturing explosives in Jordan.

 

The SSC declared Muath and Moath Ghanem, guilty of manufacturing weapons (missiles) with illicit intent and handed each a 15-year prison term.

 

A third defendant, Mohsen Ghanem, who was charged with complicity in manufacturing weapons (missiles) with illicit intent, was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison.

 

Hisham, Muath and Mohsen Ghanem were also declared guilty of committing acts that disturb public order and endanger the safety and security of society.

 

They were each sentenced to three years and four months by the SSC.

 

According to the prosecution charge sheet, the three men built to warehouses where they manufactured short-range missiles.

 

“The three men received training and financial support from abroad to manufacture the missiles,” the SSC prosecutor's charge sheet stated.

 

In a separate case, the SSC declared Marwan Hawamdeh and Anas Abu Awad guilty of committing acts that disturb public order and acts that endanger the safety and security of society and handed each three years and four months in prison.

 

“The defendants focused on training young men in receiving advanced security courses so that they would assign them later to carry out certain tasks,” the charge sheet maintained.

 

In the recruitment case, the SSC convicted defendants Khader Abdulaziz, Ayman Ajjawi, Mohammad Saleh and Farouq Salman guilty of committing acts that disturb public order and acts that endanger the safety and security of society and handed each three years and four months in prison.

 

“The defendants visited regional countries with the aim of recruiting young men inside the Kingdom,” according to the charge sheet.

 

The aim, the charge sheet added, was to train the young men on security training so that they would meet secretly to designate deadly points inside the Kingdom so that they could plant their explosive substances,” the charge sheet stated.

 

In a separate case involving the drone manufacturing project, the SSC acquitted defendants Ali Qassem, Abdulaziz Haroun, Abdullah Haddar, and Ahmad Khalifah of the charges for lack of evidence.

 

Wednesday verdicts will be automatically reviewed by the Court of Cassation within the next 30 days.

 

During a press conference in mid-April, Government Communications Minister and official spokesperson Mohammad Momani told reporters that the 17 suspects were allegedly involved in four “coordinated plots” that the GID has foiled after years of surveillance and investigation.

 

The alleged plots, according to Momani, were aimed at threatening national security, using short-range missiles, explosives, drones and automatic weapons.

 

The minister added that the suspects allegedly recruited operatives from abroad for militant activities.

 

"These cases were serious and deliberate attempts to harm Jordan's national security," Momani said.

 

"Under no circumstances will Jordan tolerate any attempt to undermine its national security," Momani stressed.

 

Some of the suspects appeared on national television where they reportedly confessed to their alleged roles in manufacturing missiles, drones and recruiting others to join them.