7th October 2013
On 5 October 2012, two young British Muslims, Babar Ahmad and Talha Ahsan, were extradited to the United States. They were never brought to trial in a British court, even after a detention period of eight and six years respectively. Both men have now spent a further year in a US prison awaiting trial for alleged terrorism offences, which was originally scheduled for October 2013 but now may take place in March 2014. Meanwhile they remain in isolated conditions, away from friends and family. They are in a US ‘supermax’ prison regime where it is standard practice to keep inmates locked up in solitary confinement for 23 hours of the day.
Talha has Asperger’s Syndrome and there is grave concern for the mental health of both men. Speaking for the Muslim Council of Britain, Secretary General Farooq Murad noted, “Many hundreds of thousands in Britain signed the petition against their extradition and calling for a trial before a British judge but it was to no avail. We now call on our Government to press the US Attorney General to grant the two men bail while awaiting trial and preparing their defence.”
Both men have suffered long enough, as have their families. However it is never too late for compassion.
[ends]
Notes to Editors:
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