The world's first ever conviction dealing with charges related to terrorist attacks on the United States the 11th of September 2001 has been overturned by an appeals court in Germany and a new trial has been ordered.

Moroccan Mounir El Motassadeq was given a maximum 15 years in prison after he was found guilty of of 3,000 counts of accessory to murder. Defense lawyers successfully argued that the defense had been hindered by lack of cooperation from the US.

The US refused to hand over the testimony of Ramzi Binalshibh, a suspected al-Qaeda militant currently in US custody, on the grounds that it could threaten national security. The new trial will be held in Hamburg.

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