Qatada freed with tough bail curbs (From Ealing Times)

Qatada freed with tough bail curbs

9:22pm Monday 13th February 2012 in National News © Press Association 2011

A radical cleric who poses a serious risk to the UK's national security is on bail after spending six-and-a-half years in prison.

Abu Qatada was released on Monday night under some of the toughest conditions imposed since the September 11 terror attacks.

The 51-year-old, once described by a judge as Osama bin Laden's right-hand man in Europe, is banned from taking his youngest child to school, must stay inside his home for 22 hours a day and cannot talk to anyone who has not been vetted by the security services first.

Qatada was driven from the high-security Long Lartin prison in Evesham, Worcestershire, where he has been held while fighting deportation.

He was released after applying for bail when human rights judges in Europe ruled he could not be deported without assurances from Jordan that evidence gained through torture would not be used against him.

Under the terms of his release, the Home Secretary has just three months to show the Government is making significant progress in securing his deportation or risk Qatada being freed from his bail conditions.

Downing Street has stressed the Government was considering "all the options" for removing Qatada "at the earliest opportunity".

Lawyers agreed the bail conditions as a Jordanian government minister said the country was working with the UK Government to give the European Court of Human Rights the assurances it needed.

The cleric, who must wear an electronic tag and check in with the monitoring firm up to four times a day as he enters and leaves his home, is prohibited from making any statement without the prior approval of the Home Secretary.

According to reports, up to 60 police officers will be required to monitor the freed cleric, at a cost of around £10,000 a week to the taxpayer.