U.S. judge nixes terror deportation

WASHINGTON, Oct. 10 (UPI) -- A Tunisian terror suspect being held at the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, cannot be sent home, a U.S. federal judge ruled.

Judge Gladys Kessler of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled Mohammed Rahman cannot be sent to Tunisia because he could suffer "irreparable harm," The Washington Post reported.

Two other men sent to Tunisia from Guantanamo in June claimed they were tortured and Rahman is the first detainee to succeed in avoiding forced return.

Kessler wrote "it would be a profound miscarriage of justice" if Rahman was sent to Tunisia, which has convicted him in absentia on terror charges and sentenced him to 20 years in prison, The New York Times said.

Erik Ablin, a Justice Department spokesman, told the Post the government is considering an appeal.