The UK high court judges have ruled that five suspected terrorists, including Abu Hamza al-Masri, can be extradited to the US. The extradition will end the long legal battle which involves Babar Ahmad, Adel Abdul Bary, Syed Talha and Khaled al-Fawwaz.
According to our sources, the appeal had come after the European Court of Human Rights had supported the successive UK courts in the ruling for extradition.
The judges have said that the extradition, “may proceed immediately”. The home office also said that it wants to deport the terrorists as soon as possible. The judges Justice Ousley and Sir John Thomas in their ruling said that there was an “overwhelming public interest in the functioning of the extradition system” and that there was “no appeal from our decision”.
The written ruling which was read in court had concluded that every application for permission to apply for judicial review or re-opening of the statutory appeals must be dismissed. The lawyers of Abu Hamza had argued that he may not be fit to face trial on medical grounds. The judges stated that the extradition to the United States could be followed immediately.
The US embassy in London released a statement stating that they were pleased with the extradition after a lengthy process of litigation, and that the law enforcement relationship between the two countries is based on trust and respect and eliminating safe haven for criminals.
