Mr Belhaj – who claims to have been seized in China in 2004 as he was about to fly to London to claim asylum – alleges that British intelligence tipped off the Libyan authorities and helped the US arrange his rendition to Libya where he says he was tortured, reports the BBC.
Settlement process
The Libyan – who was the leader of an Islamist group which fought the Gaddafi regime and now serves as a minister in the country’s government – claims he was brutally mistreated during six years in jails, and is suing then-Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, former MI6 counter-terrorism director Sir Mark Allen and the attorney general.
At a hearing yesterday at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, Rory Phillips QC said the government ‘will indeed be pleased to enter into a settlement process to draw a line under this case’.
Apology
However, Mr Belhaj has offered to settle his claim for a token payment of £1 as long as he is given an apology which, according to the article, is unlikely to come.
Mr Justice Simon said any trial ‘has the potential to be lengthy’ and that ‘it must be possible to reach a solution’.
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