Julian Assange Next :0)http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19706404


Abu Hamza and Babar Ahmad extradition approved








Babar Ahmad, 37, has been held in UK custody without trial for nearly eight years




The
European Court of Human Rights has given its final approval for the
extradition of five major terrorism suspects from the UK to the US.
The court's highest judges said they would not re-open the cases of Abu Hamza al-Masri, Babar Ahmad and others.


The decision means that the extradition of the men, wanted for years by the US, is likely to happen within weeks.


The Home Office welcomed the decision, saying it would ensure the extraditions happen as quickly as possible.


Each man had said they would face inhumane treatment in the United States if they were sent there.


Abu Hamza is accused of planning a terror training camp in the US and assisting hostage-taking in Yemen.


The US says that Babar Ahmad and his co-accused, Syed Talha
Ahsan, ran a jihadist website in London that provided material support
for terrorism.
Adel Abdul Bary, Khaled Al Fawwaz are accused of being aides to Osama bin Laden in London.


In a statement, the Strasbourg court said: "On 10 April 2012
the European Court of Human Rights held, in the case of Babar Ahmad and
Others v. the United Kingdom, that there would be no violation of the
applicants' rights if extradited to stand trial in the United States.

Continue reading the main story THE SUSPECTS

• Abu Hamza
• Babar Ahmad
• Syed Talha Ahsan
• Adel Abdul Bary
• Khaled al-Fawwa

[*]Profiles: UK-held terror suspects[/*][/list]
"On 9/10 July 2012, five of the
applicants lodged a request for referral of the case to the Grand
Chamber. Today the Grand Chamber Panel decided to reject the request.
This means that the Chamber judgment of 10 April 2012 is now final."
Abu Hamza had alleged that he faced inhumane and degrading treatment if imprisoned for life without possibility of parole.


The other four men, Babar Ahmad, Syed Talha Ahsan, Adel Abdul
Bary and Khaled Al Fawwaz said that they faced an inhumane regime of
solitary confinement in a special "supermax" prison.
A Home Office spokesman said: "The Home Secretary welcomes
today's decision not to refer the cases of Abu Hamza and four others to
the Grand Chamber. This follows the judgment of the European Court of
Human Rights on April 10 to allow the extradition of these five
terrorism suspects to the US.
"We will work to ensure that the individuals are handed over to the US authorities as quickly as possible."





Abu Hamza could be extradited within weeks

Babar Ahmad's family said: "The decision of the Grand Chamber
is largely irrelevant to us as this matter should never have come to
this stage had the British police done their job almost nine years ago
and provided the material seized from Babar's home to the CPS, rather
than secretly passing it to their US counterparts.
"The CPS is now in possession of all that material which
forms the basis of the US indictment and should immediately prosecute
Babar for conduct allegedly committed in the UK.
"There is enormous public interest in Babar being prosecuted
in the UK, as reflected by the fact that almost 150,000 members of the
British public signed a government e-petition to this effect last year.
"Moreover, a British businessman Karl Watkins has recently
commenced his own private prosecution of Babar based on the principle of
the matter.
"We now call on the home secretary to immediately undertake
to halt any extradition until the Director of Public Prosecutions makes a
decision on this material that been in his possession for several
months."

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