On Monday, Spain succeeded where Germany has otherwise failed: It sentenced 18 suspected al-Qaida suspects to prison for assisting in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The much-watched case was the biggest al-Qaida trial in Europe to date and the verdict stretched to a stunning 445 pages. In it, Spain's High Court sentenced Srual Imad Eddin Barakat Yarkas, 41, to 27 years in prison for conspiring with the 9-11 plotters and for heading an al-Qaida terrorist cell in Madrid. The court also found 17 other men were found guilty of either belonging to or aiding his terrorist cell and handed down sentences of six to 11 years. The list includes Taysir Alony, a correspondent for the Arabic satellite network Al Jazeera, who in 2001 secured an interview with Osama bin Laden. He was sentenced to seven years in prison, but insists -- as do most of the convicted -- that he will appeal. Six other men were acquitted. To the chagrin of prosecutors, the court threw out the more serious charges -- that of killing the 2,773 people who died in the attacks.

The sentences are the first ever handed down to conspirators in attacks that sent New York's Twin Towers crumbling down and destroyed part of the US Pentagon. Of course, those directly responsible died along with their victims; but investigators have spent years trying to jail the hijackers' helpers. Those attempts -- particularly in Germany -- have largely failed, often because of legalities. In August a German court acquitted a Moroccan, Mounir el-Motassadeq, of helping plan the attacks (although he was found guilty of belonging to al-Qaida). Motassadeq was originally convicted of participating in the 9/11 plot, but the decision was overturned last year when a court decided he'd been denied a fair trial because America refused to allow testimony from al-Qaida suspects in US custody.

German authorities last year also released another suspected 9-11 collaborator, Syrian-born Mahmoun Darkanzali, after police failed to find enough evidence linking him to the plot. Darkanzali's name surfaced again this year in connection with the Spanish trial and Spanish prosecutors tried to extradite him to Spain to testify. But the German parliament refused to implement Europe-wide arrest warrant legislation and Darkanzali remains in Germany with his German wife. German authorities have also stumbled in their attempts to prosecute men suspected of belonging to a Hamburg terrorist cell that included Mohamed Atta, the ringleader of the 9-11 attacks. Although German courts convicted two men for collaborating with Atta's group, both convictions were overturned.

In the Spanish case, the prosecution accused Yarkas (also known as Abu Dahdah) of arranging a July 2001 meeting in northeastern Spain, where the final preparations -- including the decision to attack on September 11 -- are thought to have been made. The prosecution claims Atta and other al-Qaida higher-ups attended the meeting. Spanish observers say the case vindicates their country's stance against Islamic terror, which has emphasized swift legal prosecution rather than Gunantanamo-style interrogation or military intervention. The prosecution, which had hoped for "exemplary" sentences of 74,377 years (25 years for each victim, plus 12 years for membership in a terrorist organization) was disappointed. Still, the case is viewed as a test run for the massive trial set for next year involving the alleged plotters of the massive train bombings that killed 191 in Madrid on March 11, 2003. (2 p.m. CET)

Beware! Killer Flipper on the Loose

In by far the most bizarre hurricane-related story we've seen, the Guardian reports that armed dolphins trained by the US military to shoot terrorists underwater may be on the loose the Gulf of Mexico. Up to 36 slippery shooters trained by the US Navy may have escaped their control pools during Hurricane Katrina and could be roaming the waters armed with "toxic darts." Divers and surfers may be at risk of attack from packs of spy-seeking, sonar-using dolphins, says the British daily. Although the US admits it has been training dolphins for military purposes for decades, it refuses to discuss if any of its sharp-shooters are on the lam.

That's partly because the dolphin-training program is top secret. The dolphins wear harnesses equipped with darts. The Navy apparently had training ponds in a sound in Louisiana, close to Lake Pontchartrain, whose waters flooded New Orleans. The dolphins were trained to attack "terrorists" in wetsuits -- meaning any neoprene-wrapped human. The darts have chemicals to put suspects to sleep, not kill them, but even sleep can be lethal underwater. The dolphin training program has been criticized since its inception in 1989, when dolphins were first used to used to patrol and protect Trident submarines in San Diego harbor and stationary warships at sea. Most recently, they've detected mines near an Iraqi port. The US military seems to need all the recruits it can muster. (12 p.m. CET)

Sexist Songs?

Europe's national anthems could be on the chopping block. Austria's feisty Minister for Women's Affairs wants her nation's hymn to be hacked and purged of all sexist references. "It's discriminatory," she says. That means goodbye to lyrics praising the "fatherland," aufwiedersehen to all references to "brotherly choruses," and so long to the line, "You are the native home of great sons." Instead, Maria-Rauch-Kallat, a center-right politician, advocates using gender-neutral terms like "homeland" and "joyful choruses." The terms better reflect the role of women in Austria today, she says. She already has support from opposing Social Democrats, and may just succeed. If she does, she could set a precedent for the rest of Europe, where male-dominated national anthems are as ubiquitous as cheese in France, watches in Switzerland, and cars in Germany.