UAE tries suspected militant in US jogger attack

An Emirati man accused of links with militant groups went on trial in Abu Dhabi on Monday for allegedly running over and attempting to kill a US jogger, media reports said.

The unidentified man is accused of attempting to join Syria's al-Qaeda affiliate, plotting attacks in the UAE and promoting radical organisations including the Islamic State group, said state news agency WAM.

The 29-year-old repeatedly ran over a US national in May 2015, the prosecution said, "with the intention of killing him,".

It said the American man, who was jogging in Abu Dhabi at the time, was injured but survived.

He was charged with premeditated attempted manslaughter after going after the American man that was jogging in Abu Dhabi at the time of the attack.

"He is also accused of plotting to commit acts of terrorism in the UAE, including bombing the headquarters of Sky News Arabia in Abu Dhabi and Al-Arabiya in Dubai," the daily said, referring to two news channels.

The suspect had allegedly travelled to Turkey previously, in an attempt to join Syria's al-Qaeda-affiliate al-Nusra Front, now known as Fateh al-Sham Front.

He denied the charges during the hearing at the Abu Dhabi Federal Supreme Court and the trial was adjourned to October 3.

Meanwhile on Monday, two Emirati women stood in the same court accused of sending money and coded messages to al-Qaeda members, the paper added.

The United Arab Emirates is part of a global US-led coalition battling the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria.

Recent events prompted authorities in the Gulf state have enacted anti-terror legislation, including the death penalty and harsher jail terms for crimes linked to religious hatred and extremist groups.