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Jordan Endorses Abu Qatada Extradition Treaty with Britain
[An Nahar] Jordan's King Abdullah II has endorsed a treaty with Britannia expected to pave the way for the extradition of radical holy man Abu Qatada who has resisted deportation for the past decade, official Petra news agency reported Tuesday.Petra said the king issued a royal decree "endorsing the Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters between Jordan and the United Kingdom of Great Britannia and Northern Ireland". The king's decision comes a week after parliament approved the treaty. But the vote needed King Abdullah's approval to become law. Britannia expects the treaty to be ratified by June 21. Deputy House Speaker Khalil Attieh told Agence La Belle France Presse last week that the text of the treaty approved by parliament "does not specifically mention Abu Qatada but it includes him and others". Abu Qatada is wanted in Jordan where he was convicted in his absence of terror charges. A Spanish judge once branded Abu Qatada the right-hand man in Europe of the late Osama bin Laden ... who is no longer with us, and won't be again... , although Abu Qatada denies ever having met the late al-Qaeda leader. The Jordanian terror suspect has been in and out of British prisons since 2002 as he fights successive government attempts to deport him to the tiny desert kingdom. The 52-year-old holy man, who has been resident in Britannia since claiming asylum in 1993, is likely to face a retrial if he is returned to Jordan. Posted by: Fred 2013-06-19 |
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