Parents of Slain Diver Confront Hamadi at Trial

Mohammed Ali Hamadi refused to enter a plea at the opening of his trial here Tuesday on murder and other charges growing out of the 1985 hijacking of a TWA jetliner, and the parents of a U.S. Navy diver slain during the 17-day ordeal confronted the defendant in court as co-plaintiffs with the prosecution.

Hamadi would only give his name, rebuffing Presiding Judge Heiner Mueckenberger’s request that he identify his birthplace and provide other biographical information. The trial is likely to last into next year, with the issue of Hamadi’s age expected to dominate the opening phase.

The prosecution contends he was born in June, 1964, which would make him over 21 at the time of the hijacking and therefore subject to trial as an adult, with a maximum term of life imprisonment if convicted. Hamadi maintains he was born in 1966, making him a juvenile in 1985. This would mean that the maximum term he could get would be 15 years in prison.

Hamadi, a Shia Muslim, has been linked to the pro-Iranian Lebanese Shia militia group Hezbollah (Party of God).

Stethem Family at Trial

Richard and Patricia Stethem, parents of murdered Navy diver Robert Dean Stethem of Waldorf, Md., represented themselves, their three surviving children and six U.S. hijacking victims who were held 17 days after the diversion of their TWA Athens-to-Rome flight to Beirut where Stethem was killed.

The American co-plaintiffs are able to participate in court proceedings under West German law.