Mother pleads for suspect's life

The mother of a terror suspect accused of being part of the 11 September conspiracy has flown to the United States to beg for his life.

Zacarias Moussaoui, 33, a French national, is facing the death penalty after being charged with murder, aircraft piracy and the use of weapons of mass destruction.

His mother Aicha el-Wafi arrived in Washington from France yesterday, hoping to see her son, who is due to make a court appearance in Virginia on 2 January.

Mrs el-Wafi said she could not understand the charges against her son and questioned whether he could get a fair trial in the US. She said: "He wrote to me in October, and in that letter he told me: 'Mum, I haven't done anything, I have proof I've done nothing.

You'll see, Mum, I'll show you I haven't'. She added: "I share the sense of loss Americans have felt since 11 September but people should not try my son just to make an example of him."

Her lawyer, Francois Roux, said his priority was to avoid the death penalty. US investigators believe Moussaoui, who had been attending a flight school, would have joined one of the four 11 September suicide squads if he had not been arrested beforehand.