LONDON, March 11 (UPI) -- Lawyers for Britain's Home Secretary began another attempt Monday to expel radical cleric Abu Qatada, who has fought deportation to Jordan for a decade.
Theresa May's lawyers are attempting to overturn a ban on deporting Qatada, once referred to by a judge as Osama bin Laden's right-hand man in Europe, after an immigration judge concluded in November Qatada would not receive a fair trial on terrorist charges if returned to Jordan, the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph said.
In the latest legal battle, the Home Office is appealing a decision by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission that he cannot be returned to Jordan because there was a "real risk" evidence obtained under torture could be used against him, a violation of his human rights.
The one-day hearing, before three judges, comes after Qatada was rearrested in London Friday for allegedly breaching bail conditions governing access to mobile phones, The Guardian reported Monday.
