In Vienna and Graz, former radical Islam preachers are on trial.
Two major terrorist trials are going to the final: On the one hand there is the trial in Vienna against the Chechnya refugee Turpal I (32) – he is accused of atrocities in Syria – and Mirsad Omerovic (39), who is again on trial as a “hate preacher” .
On the other hand, there is the new edition of the Graz trial against eleven jihadists. Four of the eleven people were already sentenced to prison terms in March 2020 as supporters of a terrorist organization, namely the terrorist militia Islamic State (IS). Including the Bosnian preacher Nedzad B. (45). At the behest of the Supreme Court, which had criticized the questions put to the jury at the time on the charge of “connections against the state”, this allegation in particular must be re-examined in the first instance.
Back to Vienna: The German Islamic scholar and terrorism expert Guido Steinberg gave his report on the Omerovic lectures here on Tuesday. The latter was “the leading IS preacher in Austria” until his arrest. Omerovic, who used to be an Islamic teacher at a private school in Vienna (employer was the Vienna City School Council), later a preacher in the Altun Alem mosque in the 2nd district, but also a preacher in Graz, was “part of the Germanization of jihadism,” said Steinberg . The accused adopt a conservative, backward-looking interpretation of Islam. The appraiser: “Anyone who does not live like this quickly runs the risk of being called an unbeliever.” In addition, the preacher represented the idea of jihadism.
“Caused a lot of mischief”
More than 60 young supporters are said to have gone to Syria to join IS because of the inciting lectures. Omerovic has risen to become the “star of the scene” among Islamists. Quite a few Chechens made their way to Syria “more out of a thirst for adventure”, but this does not apply to the pupils of the now accused. They joined jihad “out of conviction”.
As a reminder: Omerovic, now defended by lawyer Leonhard Kregcjk, admitted at the beginning of the trial: “My lectures have caused a lot of disaster.” As reported, he was convicted of attempted incitement to terrorist murder in Graz. And is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence.
Other people are also charged with him, including Turpal I. He and his family had fled from his home to Austria at the age of 14. Here he trained as a Taekwondo fighter and won titles, whereby, according to the indictment, he was embedded “in the radical Islamist scene” in Vienna and Innsbruck. In 2013 he moved with his partner A. (28) – she is now also accused – to the Syrian combat zone. There he is said to have committed atrocities for radical Islamist motives. But he does not plead guilty to this. He is incriminated by a former traveler to Syria, a Chechen who listened to the IS fighters’ radio. However, this man last stated before the jury (he is in witness protection and came masked in black) that he could not remember much.
Turpal I. free again
Because Turpal I was imprisoned for the maximum period of two years before his indictment was finished, he had to be released. Last week, the Graz public prosecutor Johannes Winklhofer, who had come to Vienna, obtained another arrest, but this only lasted two days. Then, as expected, the Graz Regional Court rejected the application for a new imprisonment. A total of six people are charged.
The judgments in Graz could be issued on Thursday, those in Vienna at the beginning of next week.
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