Islamabad - A Briton of Pakistani origin accused of
masterminding last summer's plot to blow up transatlantic jets is
preparing to sue the British government for implicating him in a
concocted terrorism case, his lawyer said Friday.
Rashid Rauf, who was 25 at the time of his arrest, faces charges
in Pakistan of conspiring to detonate liquid explosives on airliners
flying from London to the United States in August. British
authorities made a spate of arrests in pre-emptive raids before the
suspected attacks could take place.
Unofficially, London has sought Rauf's extradition from Islamabad
to face trial in Britain not for terrorism but in connection with the
murder of an uncle in April 2002, after which date Rauf moved to
Pakistan.
The British government is nonetheless casting his client as a
suspected terrorist through the media, lawyer Hashmat Habib, told
Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
If enquiries submitted to the British High Commission about the
grounds for his possible extradition do not yield a satisfactory
explanation within three days, a lawsuit seeking damages of one
billion pounds sterling (1.9 billion US dollars) will be filed
against the British government, he said.
Pakistan has no extradition treaty with the UK but its Interior
Ministry has reportedly said it would consider deporting Rauf to
Britain as an exceptional case.
Habib said portrayal of his client as a terrorist had deprived him
of his liberty and that his health had deteriorated as result of his
detention in the city of Rawalpindi in 'inhuman conditions.'
Pakistani police detained Rashid Rauf on August 9 last year in the
central city of Bahawalpur but officially claimed that his arrest
came on August 10 at Islamabad airport for possession of hydrogen
peroxide chemicals, the lawyer said.
An anti-terrorism court exonerated Rauf of terrorism charges on
December 13 citing lack of evidence and referred the case to a civil
court. But a higher court moved by the government annulled the
decision.
Rauf is due to appear on January 15 before the Lahore High Court,
which will decide whether his trial is to be held in a civil or anti-
terrorism court.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur 
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