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| Libyan dissident wins right to sue UK government over rendition | Libyan dissident wins right to sue UK government over rendition |
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| The British government’s attempts to avoid being being sued for the 2004 kidnapping of a Libyan dissident and his wife, organised when Jack Straw was foreign secretary, have been dismissed by the supreme court. | The British government’s attempts to avoid being being sued for the 2004 kidnapping of a Libyan dissident and his wife, organised when Jack Straw was foreign secretary, have been dismissed by the supreme court. |
| Devastating claims that the rendition and torture of Abdel Hakim Belhaj breached rights enshrined in the Magna Carta should be put before an English court, a unanimous judgment by seven justices concludes. | Devastating claims that the rendition and torture of Abdel Hakim Belhaj breached rights enshrined in the Magna Carta should be put before an English court, a unanimous judgment by seven justices concludes. |
| In a series of linked judgments, the UK’s highest court has ruled that ministers cannot claim “state immunity” or escape trial on the grounds of the legal doctrine of “foreign acts of state”. | In a series of linked judgments, the UK’s highest court has ruled that ministers cannot claim “state immunity” or escape trial on the grounds of the legal doctrine of “foreign acts of state”. |
| But the justices did rule in favour of the government in related overseas detention cases brought by a Pakistani, Yunus Ramatullah, and an Afghan, Serdar Mohammed, declaring that claims based on Iraqi or Afghan law could be resisted due to the principle of “crown act of state”. | But the justices did rule in favour of the government in related overseas detention cases brought by a Pakistani, Yunus Ramatullah, and an Afghan, Serdar Mohammed, declaring that claims based on Iraqi or Afghan law could be resisted due to the principle of “crown act of state”. |
| That decision may affect the prospects of hundreds of other claimants who are taking action against the Ministry of Defence. All of the cases, including that of Belhaj, will now have to return to the high court for trial. | That decision may affect the prospects of hundreds of other claimants who are taking action against the Ministry of Defence. All of the cases, including that of Belhaj, will now have to return to the high court for trial. |
| Dismissing the government’s appeal in the Belhaj case to the supreme court, Lord Mance said the use of torture “has long been regarded as abhorrent by English law”, as individuals must be protected from deliberate physical mistreatment while in custody. | Dismissing the government’s appeal in the Belhaj case to the supreme court, Lord Mance said the use of torture “has long been regarded as abhorrent by English law”, as individuals must be protected from deliberate physical mistreatment while in custody. |
| “The critical point in my view is the nature and seriousness of the misconduct alleged … at however high a level it may have been authorised.” | “The critical point in my view is the nature and seriousness of the misconduct alleged … at however high a level it may have been authorised.” |
| Quoting from the Magna Carta, Mance said: “No free man shall be taken, or imprisoned, or dispossessed, of his … liberties … or be outlawed, or exiled, or in any way destroyed … excepting by the legal judgment of his peers, or by the laws of the land.” | Quoting from the Magna Carta, Mance said: “No free man shall be taken, or imprisoned, or dispossessed, of his … liberties … or be outlawed, or exiled, or in any way destroyed … excepting by the legal judgment of his peers, or by the laws of the land.” |
| Mance added that the letter – which Sir Mark Allen, then head of counter-terrorism at MI6 sent to Muammar Gaddafi’s intelligence chief, Moussa Koussa, provided a “hint of the underlying reasons” why the UK may have provided the tip-off that led to the couple being captured. | Mance added that the letter – which Sir Mark Allen, then head of counter-terrorism at MI6 sent to Muammar Gaddafi’s intelligence chief, Moussa Koussa, provided a “hint of the underlying reasons” why the UK may have provided the tip-off that led to the couple being captured. |
| Lord Sumption said that the conduct of the other governments involved were “sovereign acts”, and that if the US, Malaysia, Thailand and Libya were being sued, they would have enjoyed immunity. “However, they have not been sued. Only the government and agents of the United Kingdom have been.” Belhaj and his wife, Fatima Bouchar, must therefore be permitted to sue the government. | Lord Sumption said that the conduct of the other governments involved were “sovereign acts”, and that if the US, Malaysia, Thailand and Libya were being sued, they would have enjoyed immunity. “However, they have not been sued. Only the government and agents of the United Kingdom have been.” Belhaj and his wife, Fatima Bouchar, must therefore be permitted to sue the government. |
| Belhaj and Bouchar were abducted in Bangkok in March 2004 and flown by the CIA from Bangkok to Gaddafi’s interrogation and torture cells in Tripoli. | Belhaj and Bouchar were abducted in Bangkok in March 2004 and flown by the CIA from Bangkok to Gaddafi’s interrogation and torture cells in Tripoli. |
| Two weeks later, Tony Blair paid his first visit to the country, embracing Gaddafi and declaring that Libya had recognised “a common cause, with us, in the fight against al-Qaida extremism and terrorism”. At the same time, in London, the Anglo-Dutch oil giant Shell announced that it had signed a £110m deal for gas exploration rights off the Libyan coast. | Two weeks later, Tony Blair paid his first visit to the country, embracing Gaddafi and declaring that Libya had recognised “a common cause, with us, in the fight against al-Qaida extremism and terrorism”. At the same time, in London, the Anglo-Dutch oil giant Shell announced that it had signed a £110m deal for gas exploration rights off the Libyan coast. |
| Three days later, a second Libyan dissident, Sami al-Saadi, was bundled on board a plane in Hong Kong and taken to Tripoli in a joint British-Libyan rendition operation. Saadi’s wife and four children were also kidnapped and taken to Libya. The youngest was a girl aged six. The family was incarcerated; Saadi and Belhaj were held for more than six years, and say they were subjected to torture throughout this time. | Three days later, a second Libyan dissident, Sami al-Saadi, was bundled on board a plane in Hong Kong and taken to Tripoli in a joint British-Libyan rendition operation. Saadi’s wife and four children were also kidnapped and taken to Libya. The youngest was a girl aged six. The family was incarcerated; Saadi and Belhaj were held for more than six years, and say they were subjected to torture throughout this time. |
| Evidence of MI6 involvement in the Libyans’ ordeal emerged in correspondence with Allen that was found inside the abandoned office of Koussa, Gaddafi’s foreign minister and former intelligence chief, after the regime fell. | Evidence of MI6 involvement in the Libyans’ ordeal emerged in correspondence with Allen that was found inside the abandoned office of Koussa, Gaddafi’s foreign minister and former intelligence chief, after the regime fell. |
| Among the papers that were discovered was a fax signed by Allen, then head of counter-terrorism, in which he made clear that the agency had supplied the intelligence that made it possible for the couple to be located and detained. | Among the papers that were discovered was a fax signed by Allen, then head of counter-terrorism, in which he made clear that the agency had supplied the intelligence that made it possible for the couple to be located and detained. |
| Last July, the Crown Prosecution Service decided there was insufficient evidence to prosecute Allen, despite concluding that he had been in contact with the US and Libya and that he had “sought political authority for some of his actions”. | Last July, the Crown Prosecution Service decided there was insufficient evidence to prosecute Allen, despite concluding that he had been in contact with the US and Libya and that he had “sought political authority for some of his actions”. |
| The Scotland Yard officers who investigated the affair were said to be furious at the decision, and Belhaj’s lawyers said they would be seeking permission to mount a judicial review. | The Scotland Yard officers who investigated the affair were said to be furious at the decision, and Belhaj’s lawyers said they would be seeking permission to mount a judicial review. |
| Saadi and his family settled their claim in 2012 when they were paid £2.2m by the British government. | Saadi and his family settled their claim in 2012 when they were paid £2.2m by the British government. |
| However, Belhaj and Boucher have refused to settle, unless they also receive an apology from the British government. The government has declined to do this, as this would amount to an admission of involvement in a grave human rights abuse. | However, Belhaj and Boucher have refused to settle, unless they also receive an apology from the British government. The government has declined to do this, as this would amount to an admission of involvement in a grave human rights abuse. |
| Commenting on the ruling, Straw said: “This judgment is about some important points of law, related to how far it is possible to bring into a court process in the UK actions of sovereign states abroad. | |
| “However, at no stage so far have the merits of the applicant’s case been tested before any court. That can only happen when the trial of the action itself takes place. I repeat what I said in the House of Commons in December 2013, that as Foreign Secretary I acted at all times in a manner which was fully consistent with my legal duties, and with national and international law. I was never in any way complicit in the unlawful rendition or detention of anyone by other states.” | |
| Sapna Malik, of law firm Leigh Day which is representing Belhaj said: “The supreme court today has delivered an emphatic judgment upholding the rule of law, particularly in the face of breaches of rights recognised as fundamental by English statute and common law, in which British defendants are alleged to have been complicit. | |
| “The justices have clearly declared that the UK courts must not refrain from deciding such cases which may involve criticism of the conduct of foreign states, even when that foreign state is the US. We hope that the defendants in this action now see fit to apologise to our clients and acknowledge the wrongs done, so that they may turn the page on this wretched chapter of their lives and move on.” | |
| British troops captured Serdar Mohammed, a suspected Taliban leader, in Helmand province, Afghanistan, in April 2010, and held him for interrogation until the following July, although regulations required his transfer within 96 hours. He was then handed over to the Afghan authorities, who held him for a further four years. | British troops captured Serdar Mohammed, a suspected Taliban leader, in Helmand province, Afghanistan, in April 2010, and held him for interrogation until the following July, although regulations required his transfer within 96 hours. He was then handed over to the Afghan authorities, who held him for a further four years. |
| Mohammed is seeking damages under the Human Rights Act, alleging breaches of the European convention on human rights | Mohammed is seeking damages under the Human Rights Act, alleging breaches of the European convention on human rights |
| Separately, British armed forces captured Abd Ali Hameed Ali al-Waheed, an Iraqi citizen, in Basra in February 2007 and held him until the end of the following month. | Separately, British armed forces captured Abd Ali Hameed Ali al-Waheed, an Iraqi citizen, in Basra in February 2007 and held him until the end of the following month. |
| His case is among several hundred brought before the UK high court in which Iraqi civilians have sought damages for their allegedly unlawful detention and, in some cases, unlawful treatment by British forces. | His case is among several hundred brought before the UK high court in which Iraqi civilians have sought damages for their allegedly unlawful detention and, in some cases, unlawful treatment by British forces. |
| In the case of both Mohammed and Waheed, the court will be deciding whether the UK’s obligation to tackle terrorism, under a 2003 UN security council resolution, prevails over article 5 of the European convention on human rights, which protects individuals’ rights to liberty. | In the case of both Mohammed and Waheed, the court will be deciding whether the UK’s obligation to tackle terrorism, under a 2003 UN security council resolution, prevails over article 5 of the European convention on human rights, which protects individuals’ rights to liberty. |