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Osama bin Laden's son-in-law was found guilty Wednesday in New York of helping al Qaeda terrorists conspire to kill Americans and providing material support to terrorists, CNN reported.

Federal prosecutors said at Sulaiman Abu Ghaith's trial that the Kuwaiti cleric played a crucial role as the organization's principal mouthpiece and recruiter, helping "restore al Qaeda's trove of new terrorists" as deadly missions turned its members into martyrs.

Abu Ghaith, wearing a dark suit, displayed no reaction as the verdict from an anonymous jury of nine women and three men was read. The jury deliberated about 5½ hours. As the defendant was being escorted out the packed courtroom, there was a slight smile on his face.

"A jury unanimously found that Sulaiman Abu Ghayth not only conspired to provide, and actually provided, material support to al Qaeda, but also conspired to kill Americans," Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a prepared statement. "He was more than just Usama bin Laden's propaganda minister. Within hours after the devastating 9/11 attacks, Abu Ghayth was using his position in al Qaeda's homicidal hierarchy to persuade others to pledge themselves to al Qaeda in the cause of murdering more Americans."

Abu Ghaith, 48, faces life in prison at sentencing on September 8.

The government did not allege that Abu Ghaith served an operational function or had a direct hand in carrying out the attacks.

Bharara added: "Like the others who have faced terrorism charges in Manhattan's federal courthouse before him, Abu Ghayth received a fair trial, after which a unanimous jury rendered its verdict, justly holding him accountable for his crimes. We hope this verdict brings some small measure of comfort to the families of the victims of al Qaeda's murderous designs."