Terror suspect freed

last updated 8 January 2015

Berlin

Germany’s high court this week ordered a suspected al Qaida member released, saying his arrest violated the German constitution. Mamoun Darkazanli, a dual citizen of Germany and Syria, is wanted by Spanish investigators for providing al Qaida with “logistical and financial support.” He was arrested on a new type of Europe-wide warrant that was approved by the E.U. last year to speed up the cross-border transfer of terrorist suspects. But the German court said the arrest violated German law, which guarantees judicial oversight of such actions. The German government complained that as a result of the ruling, dangerous suspects could run free. But opposition leaders were pleased. “I wouldn’t want a German citizen to be extradited to a foreign country without him having had the chance of receiving a hearing in a German court,” said Bavarian Interior Minister Günther Beckstein.