London chef freed from Guantanamo faces trial

A London man's spell of freedom following his release from Guantanamo Bay could come to an abrupt end when he is put on trial in his home country.

The UK lawyers of Ahmed Errachidi, who was held in the camp in Cuba for more than five years, say he has been accused of "membership of an unauthorised group", and is expected to face trial in his native Morocco within weeks.

More serious terror-related charges were dropped against Mr Errachidi last week after lawyer Clive Stafford Smith and human rights organisation Reprieve argued Mr Errachidi's case.

Mr Stafford Smith said: "This is a horrifying turn of events.

"Ahmed has suffered five unjustified years of imprisonment in Guantanamo's inhuman conditions but has now been officially cleared by the Americans, confirming that he poses no security threat.

"There are absolutely no grounds for his arrest in Morocco."

He added: "This is purely a sop to the US - every person returned to Morocco has faced trial for something.

"What concerns me is that this is a guy who has been cleared by the US military.

"If you're cleared by those US military commissions you are not guilty - there are few more biased courts in the world."

He called on the British government to intervene on behalf of Mr Errachidi, who had the right to live in the UK but did not hold British nationality.

The chef was captured in Pakistan in 2002 and, according to testimony to the US tribunal, sold for a £2,500 bounty to the CIA.

The decision to send Mr Errachidi to Guantanamo was based on information from an unidentified source which alleged the chef was at an Afghan al-Qaeda training camp in July 2001.

However, Reprieve were able to produce payslips and witnesses to prove their client had been cooking at the Westbury Hotel in exclusive Mayfair at the time.

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