Al-Arian, the former computer engineering professor at the University of South Florida incarcerated since indicted in 2003 on charges of being a key associate of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, has been acquited of eight of the 17 federal charges against him. The jury deadlocked on the rest.
He remains in custody whilst the gov’t decides whether it will attempt to retry or deport him.
Al-Arian holds permanent residency status in the United States, where he has lived for three decades. He was raised mostly in Egypt. If he is deported, it is not clear where he would be sent.
A vocal supporter of the Palestinian cause, Al-Arian and three co-defendants were charged with running a North American cell of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, a terrorist group that has killed hundreds in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
The jury refused to convict any of the four defendants. Some of the jurors said prosecutors simply failed to connect the defendants directly to any violent acts.