BERLIN (AP) — Germany is preparing to deport a Moroccan man convicted in Hamburg of helping three of the Sept. 11 attackers as they got ready to strike New York and Washington.

Mounir el-Motassadeq was convicted in 2006 of membership in a terrorist organization and accessory to murder for his part in the plot.

The 44-year-old was sentenced to the maximum 15 years but received credit for time served after his November 2001 arrest.

Hamburg Interior Ministry spokesman Frank Reschreiter said that el-Motassadeq "will leave the country soon," but wouldn't specify exactly when he'd be returned to Morocco, saying authorities didn't want to jeopardize the procedure.

He said that "all the necessary procedural steps for this have been ticked off according to plan."

El-Motassadeq's attorney didn't immediately return a call.