Arrested in February, the group had close ties with the Muslim Brotherhood in various Arab countries and North Africa. Its funding came from financial companies and real estate.

Dubai (AsiaNews/Agencies) - A court in Abu Dhabi handed down sentences ranging from seven to 15 years in prison for 64 of 94 extremists on trial, eight of them tried in absentia. The remaining 25 were acquitted for lack of evidence. All of them had been arrested in February for plotting a coup d'état.

According to the prosecution, the group had formed a "secret organisation" to overthrow the federal government of the United Arab Emirates, criticised for being too "liberal" and flouting Sharia.

The organisation was in contact with various individuals and organisations in the Arab world and North Africa, including the Muslim Brotherhood, and had created or invested in financial institutions and real estate firms to finance their activities.

 

• united
• arab
• emirates
• trial
• plot
• coup
• islamists
• extremists