Belgian wanted on terror charges imprisoned in Kenya

A Belgian and two Frenchmen wanted in Belgium on terror charges have each been sentenced to a year in jail for staying in Kenya illegally, the Standard reports. They were sentenced on Friday evening after pleading guilty to the charges at a trial in the city of Malindi. Senior principal magistrate Nathan Shiundu, refused to fine them instead. He delayed the sentencing for hours in order to take into consideration a document from the Belgian embassy in Nairobi, believed to have originated from Interpol, detailing the foreigners' alleged links to Al Qaeda and their alleged terrorism plans. Belgian Mustapha Bouyabaren, and Frenchmen Ben Abdalla Ismail and Rachid Benimari were charged alongside two Kenyans, Hussein Omar and Ahmed Omar, who were accused of harbouring them. It is believed that Belgium will try to seek Bouyabaren’s extradition, amid reports that the trio pleaded guilty in order to try and delay the process. Intelligence sources have linked the foreigners, who came to Kenya two years ago, to Al Qaeda cells in Europe, East Africa and Europe. They are believed to have recently returned from Somalia, after fighting alongside Al Shabaab militants.