US may free Pakistani after court ruling

A BRITISH court has issued a landmark ruling that may lead to American forces releasing a Pakistani man held without charges for eight years.

The Appeal Court’s ruling said Britain has seven days to produce 29-year-old Yunus Rahmatullah.

American forces, who are holding Rahmatullah, are not bound by the British court ruling.

British troops in Iraq seized Rahmatullah in 2004, but then handed him over to the American forces who sent him to Bagram Air Base, the main US military installation in Afghanistan . He’s currently in US custody.

Although Rahmatullah is not a British national, the British legal charity, Reprieve, sued claiming that British forces were in breach of international law when they rendered him to US custody without any explanation.

The Foreign Office says its lawyers are reviewing the judgment.

The ruling came after lawyers employed a piece of ancient English common law in a bid to free Rahmatullah.

Legal charity Reprieve asked the Court of Appeal to grant “habeas corpus” relief. Habeas corpus — Latin for “you may have the body” — is a procedure which requires a court to examine the legality of a detention.

And yesterday three judges directed the issue of a writ of habeas corpus, after a hearing in London, and said Rahmatullah should be freed.

Reprieve described the ruling as “historic” and “unique”.

A spokeswoman said she expected British ministers to ask the American authorities to free Rahmatullah.