No verdict on second Khazaal charge

A Sydney man who has been convicted of a terrorist-related charge may face a re-trial on a second count after a jury failed to reach a verdict.
The NSW Supreme Court jury was on Thursday afternoon discharged at the trial of
Belal Khazaal.
On Wednesday, the jurors found Khazaal guilty of producing a do-it-yourself jihad
book knowing it was connected with assisting in a terrorist act.
But, on Thursday afternoon, they told Justice Megan Latham they could not agree on a
verdict on a second charge of attempting to incite others to engage in a terrorist
act.
She discharged the jury and listed his sentencing hearing on the first charge for
October 24.
The second charge will also be mentioned on that date.
By then, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) may have made a decision on
whether Khazaal will face a second trial.
Khazaal, 38, of Lakemba in Sydney's south-west, faces a maximum penalty of 15 years'
jail for the first offence.
He has been found guilty of making a document - between September 20 and 23, 2003 -
connected with assistance in a terrorist act, knowing of that connection. He had
pleaded not guilty to that charge.
The document was a 110-page book, in Arabic, titled Provisions of the Rules of Jihad
- Short judicial rulings and organisational instructions for fighters and mujahideen
against infidels.
US international terrorism consultant Evan Kohlmann described the book to the jury
as "do-it-yourself jihad".
The jury failed to reach a verdict on the second charge of attempting to incite
others to engage in a terrorist act, between September 22 and October 8, 2003.
This charge related to him posting the book on an internet website www.almagdese.com.
Khazaal's bail was revoked on Wednesday when the guilty verdict was delivered.