Jordan court orders release of radical cleric

Jordan's state security court Wednesday pronounced radical cleric Abu Qatada innocent and ordered his release.

Abu Qatada was acquitted of charges that accused him of planning to bomb Western embassies in Jordan's capital Amman, Xinhua cited the court as saying.

In June, the court acquitted Abu Qatada of charges related to a failed attempt to bomb a US school in Amman in the late 1990s.

The Salafi cleric, who was previously convicted in absentia in Jordan for involvement in terror attacks, had pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Described by both the US and Spanish investigators as "Osama Bin Laden's ambassador in Europe" in the early 2000s, Qatada was arrested a number of times by British authorities under British anti-terrorism laws.

 

He was eventually deported to Jordan from Britain last year. Jordan authorities promptly detained him upon his arrival.