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Three people have been sentenced to death by a special court in Jeddah after being found guilty of joining Al-Qaeda’s intelligence unit and plotting to target Saudi banks.

One defendant was sentenced to 14 years in prison after being convicted of providing another defendant with a sketch of several locations around the US Embassy in Jeddah and mixing with Westerners and Americans with the eventual aim of abducting them.

He was also accused of receiving espionage training from the other defendant, harboring the cell leader and adopting a deviant ideology.

The second defendant was accused of fighting in Afghanistan without the permission of his guardian, in addition to receiving training at one of Al-Qaeda’s training camps.

He was also found guilty of establishing sleeper cells outside of Afghanistan and preparing to carry out terrorist operations in Lebanon and Yemen. He was also convicted of establishing and leading an Al-Qaeda cell in the country.

Another defendant, meanwhile, was accused of taking part in the theft of several cars at gunpoint for the purpose of robbing Saudi banks.

The money would be used to support the terrorist cell. He was also found guilty of aiding the two other defendants in using explosives and blowing up a bank car park. The lawyer objected to the sentence and asked for a copy of the verdict, the court said.

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