By Mansour Al-Shihri

Okaz/Saudi Gazette

RIYADH — Three Syrian truck drivers appeared in the Criminal Court in Riyadh on Sunday to face charges including support for the Daesh terrorist group.

The three men were among 11 Syrian truck drivers and heavy machine operators accused of forming a terrorist cell on the Saudi territory to galvanize support for Daesh and promote the group's interests among Saudi citizens.

The remaining eight defendants will appear in court in the next few days.

The public prosecutor read the list of charges against the men, which included espousing a Takfiri ideology (branding people with opposing views as infidels) that was against the teachings of the Holy Qur'an and the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be upon him). He sought maximum punishments for the accused.

The defendants requested more time to prepare their defense and the presiding judge agreed to their demand.

The prosecutor said the three defendants described the Saudi government and its leadership as infidel and exploited their presence in Saudi territories to promote their devious ideology.

He also accused them of endeavoring to recruit a number of young Saudis by inciting them to leave the country and fight alongside Daesh in Syria and other countries.

He said the defendants obtained important information about people intending to travel to Syria to join Daesh by spying on security forces and circulated such information through messages on social media platforms.

The prosecutor said one of the defendants had actually fought beside Daesh in Syria after getting training on the use of weapons and explosives.

He had also made the oath of allegiance to Daesh leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, the prosecutor told the court.