that the group members ideologies were being greatly scrutinized. The lawyers who defended that group labeled the trial as a "witch trial". It was clear that the ideological threat the Hofstad group had posed stirred the emotions of the public. The Court ruled that in the case of the Hofstad group there was a clear distinction between peaceful and harmful extremism. The Court acquitted four of the defendants because they showed no attempt for violence but only held extremist ideas. The Court also ruled that the group was not a terror organization. Nadir Adarraf, Rachid Belkacem, Mohamed El Bousklaoui, Zakaria Taybi and Jermaine Walters were acquitted and set free. On 7 November 2006 the District Court in Rotterdam awarded them compensation (in total € 300.182,04). Seven cases have been appealed to the Court of Appeal in The Hague. On 23 January 2008, the Court of Appeal acquitted those convicted in the first instance of participation in a criminal organization. According to the Court of Appeal, the Hofstad Group had insufficient organizational substance to conclude that there was an organization as referred to in Articles 140 and 140a of the Criminal Code. The court ruled that the cooperation of the suspects was not sufficiently structured to justify their conviction. In the opinion of the court, there was also no question of incitement to hatred. The Court ruled that the legislator only intended to criminalize incitement to hatred against vulnerable minority groups. The Court has sentenced one of the defendents, Jason Walters, to a prison term of 15 years for the attempted murder of members of an arrest team of the police in The Hague and possession of hand grenades. A second suspect, Ismail Akhnikh, was sentenced to 15 months in prison for complicity in possession of hand grenades. Supreme Court + back The Public Prosecution Service lodged an appeal in cassation against the judgments of the Court. Jason Walters also lodged an appeal in cassation against his conviction (08/00695). On 2 February 2010, the Supreme Court quashed the contested judgments and referred the cases to the Amsterdam Court of Appeal. On 17 December 2010, the Amsterdam Court of Appeal sentenced Mohamed El Morabit, Yousef Ettoumi, Ahmed Hamdi, Mohamed Fahmi Boughabe and Nouredine el Fahtni to prison terms of 15 months, for participating in a terrorist criminal organization. Ismail Akhnikh and Jason Walters were guilty also of possessing four hand grenades. Ismail