UK terror suspects to be extradited

The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that five UK terror suspects should be extradited from the UK to the US.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that five UK terror suspects should be extradited from the UK to the US.The Strasbourg court held there would be no violation of human rights for those facing life or solitary confinement in certain prison conditions.Abu Hamza, a radical preacher, and Babar Ahmad, an alleged fund-raiser for "terrorists” who has been in prison since 2004, will now be extradicted to the US along with Seyla Talha Ahsan, Adel Abdul Bary and Khaled Al-Fawwaz.The court’s ruling can still hypothetically be appealed to its final Grand Chamber; however, in practice very few cases are reheard in that final forum.The men have three months to try to persuade the Grand Chamber to reopen the entire case and examine it. If the men fail to launch an appeal, they will be extradited to the US.The case of Haroon Rashid Aswat has been adjourned as the judges need to see more submissions on his schizophrenia and how that would be treated were he sent to the US.All six had appealed against any US extradition as they say on arrival they might be held in a high-security prison in Colorado, known as a "supermax” prison and claim that if convicted there is very little or no prospect of ever being released.In July 2010, European judges had stopped extradition proceedings, they had argued that the court needed more time to consider the complaints that the men’s rights would be breached if they were to be sent the US, exposing them to possible life imprisonment without parole and solitary confinement.‘Global reach’