Saturday 9 March 2013

The soft underbelly

I see from news reports that Abu Qatada has been arrested for allegedly breaching the conditions of his bail.

Obviously news is a little sketchy at the moment but below are the bail conditions set when the judge in his deportation case decided that he didn't like the Jordanian Government's promises and saddled the UK taxpayer with keeping him here:

The full conditions, published by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission, are as follows:
  • Electronic tagging and reporting to a monitoring company
  • Fixed address
  • 22-hour curfew, with permission to leave home for a maximum of one hour twice a day
  • Police and others permitted to enter and search his home
  • No travel ticket or papers
  • Ban on leaving a small area in his neighbourhood, set out on a map that he has been given
  • Banned from attending a mosque
  • Banned from leading prayers, other than those in his own family
  • He must not publish any statement
  • Nobody can enter home other than family, his lawyers and Home Office officials or children under 14
  • Any other visitor must be vetted by the Home Office
  • He cannot make any arrangements to meet anyone outside the home without permission
  • If he meets an acquaintance by chance, he must make his excuses and leave
  • No meeting with 27 named individuals, some of whom are in prison
  • No meeting with anyone who is held on the new form of control orders known as TPims (Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures)
  • No mobile phone
  • No internet connection
  • No computer kit that can be connected to the net
  • Visitors may not use a mobile in his home
  • He may only have one bank account
  • He may not hold any bank or credit card not connected to that account
  • He may not transfer money out of the UK
  • He may not help others buy, sell or obtain computer equipment
  • Any educational course or training must be approved by the home secretary
  • Any job must be similarly approved
Source

Looking at the news report comment that a search has been taking place over numerous hours and across numerous properties across London, I am curious which of those bail conditions have been brokenthat would require searches of that nature to take place and at the same time fearful of what he's been up to.

I just hope that the judge's overriding concern for Mr Qatada's human rights have not permitted him the time and space to set events in motion, that we will pay a dear price for.

Imagine trying to explain that one away to the British people.

2 comments:

  1. The scenario you fear is one that would set the cat among the proverbial......

    That which it is suspected Qatada might have been up to could not have been prevented by any of the above - so the point of those conditions was?

    The mind boggles......

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  2. This is one of those which gets people apoplectic.

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