FOSIS Expresses Dismay Following extradition of Babar Ahmad

Omar Ali, President of FOSIS said, “The extradition of Babar Ahmad, a former Imperial College employee, has highlighted the failure of the British legal system in protecting its own citizens from a legal process that has been consistently criticised for torturing terror suspects. Evidence collected here in the UK was passed on to the US by British police, circumventing the on-going British investigation, while the Crown Prosecution Service refused to prosecute claiming a lack of evidence. This deliberate outsourcing to the US government openly undermines the British legal system and is a damning indictment of the UK’s subservience to the US.”

He further added, “This case has exposed a failure in our democratic system. Over 140,000 registered British voters signed a petition calling for a review of the extradition and to have Babar tried in the UK, however this petition was only met with indifference and was bluntly dismissed. With an Extradition Treaty in place that allows the US to take whomever they wish from the UK, without presenting any evidence or charges, young British Muslims will be asking, if it could happen to Babar, could it happen to me?

Omar Ali concluded: “Babar Ahmad has faced injustice throughout this eight year detention, the longest period a British citizen has ever been held without trial. He was severely beaten by police upon his arrest in 2003, who allegedly also mocked his faith. Babar Ahmad, Talha Ahsan and others, will only face more inhumane treatment and possibly even torture in the US. The British legal system should have been sufficient to bring any UK citizen to justice. However, it seems this is not about justice, this is prejudicial punishment for a crime that Babar Ahmad has not even been tried for.”

[Ends]

 

Notes:

1. FOSIS (est. 1963) is the umbrella organisation of student groups in colleges and universities throughout the UK and Ireland, representing over 100,000 Muslim students.

2. For more information please contact FOSIS Media on 07784476836, email head.media@fosis.org.uk or alternatively visit our website www.fosis.org.uk

 SOURCE: FOSIS.org.uk

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