UK Court OKs Radical Cleric's US Extradition

Radical Islamic cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri could be extradited to the US, thanks to a British court ruling today. Hamza is serving a seven-year prison term for inciting his congregation to murder, but US charges, which include attempting to set up a terrorist training camp in Oregon, could put the one-eyed, hook-wielding radical away for 100 years, Reuters reports.

But the extradition could still be squashed on human rights grounds, the court said, criticizing the harsh solitary confinement regime of US prisons. US charges would link Hamza to a specific plot, something British authorities never managed. Instead, they called his London mosque a base for militants, hosting the likes of convicted 9/11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui and “shoebomber” Richard Reid. (More Abu Hamza al Masri stories.)