Terrorist wins deportation appeal

[Flecktarn Profile]

A terrorist accused of posing a grave threat to Britain's national security cannot be sent back home because it would be a "flagrant denial of justice", human rights judges have ruled.
Radical cleric Abu Qatada, described as "Osama bin Laden's right-hand man in Europe", won his appeal to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) against the UK's efforts to deport him to Jordan with assurances that he would not be tortured.
But Home Secretary Theresa May vowed it was "not the end of the road", saying Qatada would be kept behind bars while she considered all legal options to send him back.
These include an appeal to the court's Grand Chamber within three months or seeking further assurances from Jordan that evidence gained through torture would not be used in any trial.
The judges ruled that sending Qatada back to face terror charges without those assurances could lead to evidence obtained by torture being used against him, denying him his right to a fair trial in a "flagrant denial of justice".
But former home secretary David Blunkett warned that Qatada was "extraordinarily dangerous and we don't want him on our streets".
"This man has not only justified the September 11 attacks but advocated Jihad," he told BBC Radio 4's The World At One programme.
"I do hope it would be possible to reach an agreement with the Jordanian government that they would bring forward alternative evidence to that obtained originally, allegedly, by torture."
The Henry Jackson Society think-tank added that the court's ruling "undermines national security".
Robin Simcox, a research fellow, said: "This is a man who aspiring terrorists and jihadists from around the world sought out for spiritual advice. His continued presence in the UK poses a grave national security threat."Press Association – 1 hour 25 minutes ago