Spanish court clears four more in Madrid train bombing

MADRID (Reuters) - A Spanish court on Thursday overturned the convictions of four people found guilty in connection with the 2004 Madrid train bombings, drawing protests from victims of Europe's deadliest Islamist attack.

The court overturned a 2007 ruling, which found three of the men guilty of being members of an Islamist cell that carried out the bombings that killed 191 people and wounded more than 1,800.

All four were among 21 people convicted last year of blowing apart four morning commuter trains in attacks prosecutors said were inspired by, but not directed by, al Qaeda.

Relatives of those killed said they were baffled by the Supreme Court's decision, which also upheld the acquittal of "Mohamed the Egyptian", Rabei Osman Sayed Ahmed, who was accused by prosecutors of being one of the masterminds.

"The decision to grant them acquittals is completely bizarre. We all knew this was a jihadist cell," said Pilar Majon, head of a victims' group, whose son died in the attack.

Twelve-year sentences imposed on Syrians Basel Ghalyoun and Mouhannad Almallah Dabas for belonging to a terrorist group were set aside. Moroccan Abdelilah Fadual El Akil saw his 9-year sentence for belonging to an armed group overturned.

Raul Gonzalez, a Spaniard, was spared a 5-year sentence for supplying explosives.

The court cited a lack of evidence in the cases of the Syrians, the Moroccan and Gonzalez. The court also upheld the acquittal of the Egyptian, saying he had already been convicted of the offence in Italy.

Included in Thursday's appeal ruling was a decision to sentence Antonio Toro, also a Spaniard, to four years imprisonment for trafficking explosives.

RINGLEADERS

Victim groups remain shocked by last year's original sentence, which cleared three men of masterminding the attacks and acquitted seven others.

"They killed my son and 191 other people and they've received less than a guy that burns a bus in the Basque country," said Majon of sentences that in most cases were less than 20 years.

On the morning of March 11, 2004, 10 bombs packed into sports bags were detonated by mobile phones and tore through trains like tin cans, throwing bodies onto the tracks.

Three weeks later, seven men including two suspected ringleaders of the bombings blew themselves up in an apartment after police closed in on them. The blast killed a policeman.

Three men -- two Moroccans and a Spaniard who provided the bombers with explosives -- were handed down sentences which may keep them in prison for 40 years, the maximum in Spanish law.

The court laid most of the charges at the feet of three other men sentenced to thousands of years in prison.

Spanish courts have said there was no proof Basque separatist rebels ETA had anything to do with the train bombs.

The conservative government in power in March 2004 at first pinned the attack on ETA. As more evidence piled up to show it was the work of an Islamist cell, Spain turned against its leaders and voted them out of power three days later. (Reporting by Emma Pinedo, Sarah Morris; writing by Andrew Hay; editing by Ibon Villelabeitia)