A settlement has been reached between the Government of the United Kingdom and torture victim and Guantanamo detainee, Abu Zubaydah.
The UK government has agreed to pay a substantial sum to our client to end his civil claim against the UK concerning the complicity of the security and intelligence agencies in his torture and rendition.
Between 2002 and 2006, Abu Zubaydah was imprisoned unlawfully and brutally tortured by the CIA in secret ‘black site’ prisons around the globe. Many states enabled that torture, including the UK.
Michael Oswald, Partner at Bhatt Murphy: “The decades of shocking and ongoing mistreatment and suffering to which our client has been subject, is a stark reminder of the consequences when states are prepared to set aside the rule of law and international legal and human rights standards. The settlement goes some way to recognise the part the UK has played in our client’s mistreatment. However, almost 25 years after he was first captured, Abu Zubaydah remains a ‘forever prisoner’ detained without charge in Guantanamo Bay – and it is incumbent on the UK Government to do whatever it can to facilitate his release and finally bring this injustice to an end.”
Michael Oswald at Bhatt Murphy acts for Abu Zubaydah in the UK instructing Ben Jaffey KC at Blackstone Chambers and Edward Craven KC at Matrix Chambers. Bhatt Murphy work alongside Professor Helen Duffy, International Counsel to Abu Zubaydah.
See press release here.
See BBC report here.
