the Federal Court of Malaysia, set aside the death sentence on a Sudaneese, Mohannad Taha Ismail, for the

the Federal Court of Malaysia, set aside the death sentence on a Sudaneese, Mohannad Taha Ismail, for the murder of his girlfriend's three-year-old daughter, four years ago. After the verdict was delivered by Court of Appeal, President Tan Sri Md Raus Sharif, family members and friends of former college student Mohannad Taha Ismail, who were in court, were in tears and hugged each other. Outside the court, they shouted in joy, "Alhamdulillah" (All Praise be to Allah) and some of them wept. The court made the ruling after allowing Mohannad Taha's final appeal against the conviction and death sentence imposed on him by the Shah Alam High Court on September 30, 2011. In a unanimous decision, Md Raus said after hearing submissions from both parties, the court was of the view that based on the evidence presented, it found it was unsafe to uphold the sentence against the appellant. "Therefore, the appeal is allowed, we set aside the conviction and death sentence on the appellant," he said when chairing a five-member panel comprising justices Datin Paduka Zaleha Zahari, Datuk Hasan Lah, Datuk Jeffrey Tan Kok Wha and Datuk Seri Mohamed Apandi Ali. On October 15, 2012, the Court of Appeal upheld the death sentence imposed by the Shah Alam High Court on Mohannad Taha after finding him guilty of the murder of Aaliyah Ayman Hussin Abdullah. He was charged with committing the offence at the Venice Hill Condominium in Cheras between 7.30pm and 8.30pm on Oct 12, 2009. Earlier, counsel Hisyam Teh Poh Teik representing Mohannad Taha, submitted there was no clear evidence to prove that his client had caused severe bleeding of the cranium on the victim as no one in the house could have seen him (Mohannad Taha) shaking the girl. He argued that the evidence of the mother of the girl could not be relied upon as her statement to the police and her evidence in court contradicted each other.