Sulaiman Abu Ghaith: Osama bin Laden’s son-in-law on trial in New York

The trial of Osama bin Laden’s son-in-law Sulaiman Abu Ghaith has begun in New York.

The prosecutor has said Sulaiman Abu Ghaith used the “murderous power of his words” to rally others against America after the 9/11 attacks.

The statement came during opening arguments in the terrorism trial of Sulaiman Abu Ghaith, who once served as al-Qaeda’s spokesman.

Sulaiman Abu Ghaith, 48, has pleaded not guilty to charges he conspired to kill Americans.

The Kuwaiti national was brought to New York from Turkey last year.

Prosecutors say Sulaiman Abu Ghaith appeared in videos with Osama bin Laden the day after the September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington DC that killed almost 3,000, calling for jihad against “the Jews, the Christians and the Americans”.

Assistant US Attorney Nicholas Lewin described Sulaiman Abu Ghaith as a fiery orator who had spoken to those training in al-Qaeda camps in the months before the attacks in order to inspire them.

Nicholas Lewin said Sulaiman Abu Ghaith had agreed to appear in the group’s videos to call for further violence “while our buildings still burned”.

The Kuwaiti imam is married to the late al-Qaeda leader’s eldest daughter, Fatima. He is the highest-ranking al-Qaeda official to stand trial in the US since the 9/11 attacks.

Sulaiman Abu Ghaith was turned over to US officials in Jordan in 2013 after being deported from Turkey.

On Wednesday, Sulaiman Abu Ghaith’s lawyer mocked the prosecution’s opening statement.

“You’ve just been to the movies ladies and gentlemen,” Stanley Cohen said.

“At the end of the day, there’s really no evidence. There is the substitution for evidence with fright and alarm.”

He told them some of what Sulaiman Abu Ghaith had said was “dumb. It’s stupid”.

The Obama administration’s decision to try Sulaiman Abu Ghaith in civilian court had been criticized by Republicans.