British Home Secretary in Jordan for Abu Qatada deportation talks
Theresa May is seeking assurances radical cleric would get fair trial if sent back
London: British Home Secretary Theresa May was holding talks on Monday in Jordan aimed at overcoming a European ban on deporting a radical cleric to the Arab country.
Britain wants to deport Abu Qatada, a Palestinian-Jordanian preacher described in both Spanish and British courts as a leading Al Qaida figure in Europe and a threat to national security.
The European Court of Human Rights ruled in January that Abu Qatada cannot be sent back to Jordan, because of a risk that evidence obtained through torture would be used against him if he is put on trial there.
He has previously been convicted in his absence in Jordan of terrorist offences related to two alleged bomb plots in 1999 and 2000, and would face a retrial if deported from Britain.
May is seeking to strike a deal with Jordan under which authorities would pledge not to use evidence gleaned through torture and guarantee the cleric a fair trial.
Cameron's spokesman Steve Field told reporters that May was holding talks, following up a visit to the kingdom last month by security minister James Brokenshire.
Field confirmed there was no plan for Cameron to travel to Jordan to attempt to finalise a deal, though he has discussed the case with Jordan's King Abdullah II by phone.
