Zambia to Deport Terror Suspect

A British terrorism suspect arrested in Zambia is to be deported to the UK, the Zambian president said today.

Scotland Yard detectives deny that Haroon Rashid Aswat, 30, is connected to the July 7 bombings in London but say he is wanted for questioning linked to other investigations.

The US also want to question Mr Aswat over allegations he tried to set up a terrorist training camp in Oregon in the 90s.

Mr Aswat was arrested in Lusaka, Zambia on July 20 and has been questioned by both British and US investigators.

The two teams of investigators reportedly spent days deciding where Mr Aswat should be sent.

The President of Zimbabwe, Levy Mwanawasa, said today: "I would like to confirm that we have arrested Aswat, who has been held on violating the immigration laws of Zambia. Once we were holding him we realised he was an alleged terrorist.

"It was agreed between the American and British governments that he should be deported to the United Kingdom."

No date has yet been set for deportation.

Mr Aswat's estranged family in West Yorkshire fear the US will now seek to extradite him from Britain and detain him in Guantánamo Bay.

Mr Aswat grew up in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, the home of July 7 bomber Mohammad Sidique Khan, but left more than 10 years ago.

In Italy, the attempts to secure the extradition of a man suspected of being involved in the failed July 21 bombings has taken a slow step forward.

An Italian court received a formal request from Britain this morning for the extradition of Hussein Osman, but it could still be up to six months before he is handed over.

The suspected would-be suicide bomber, known in Italy as Hamdi Issac, was arrested in Rome last week. He faces charges of international terrorism and possession of false documents in Italy that could take precedence.

Britain is trying to have Osman extradited under a new European arrest warrant, agreed after the September 11 attacks to replace existing extradition procedures that often took years to conclude.

According to the rules, Italy may refuse extradition if Osman is prosecuted by Italian magistrates for the same act as the one for which he is wanted in Britain.

But if he is prosecuted in Italy for acts other than the one he is wanted for in Britain, the rules allow judges deciding on his extradition to defer the handover until he has been tried.

The EU warrant also gives them the possibility of handing over Osman temporarily to Britain under terms to be agreed by judicial authorities in Rome and London.

The court was expected to fix a date for an extradition hearing later today.