European human rights judges on Thursday froze the extradition of four men from Britain to the United States because of concerns over the length of the jail terms they would receive if convicted on terrorism charges, according to Reuters. The European Court of Human Rights wants more time to consider whether to block the extradition request because of the possibility the men could be jailed for life without parole. The four suspects, who are being held in British prisons, appealed to the European court after senior judges in London upheld a government decision in 2008 to approve the extradition. One of the men, Egyptian-born Abu Hamza, is a radical preacher who applauded the 9/11 attacks. A London court jailed him for seven years in 2006 for incitement to murder and other offences. The United States accuses him of plotting to set up a terrorist training camp in Bly, Oregon, advocating violence in Afghanistan and plotting to seize 16 hostages in Yemen. The three others fighting the U.S. extradition request are Britons Babar Ahmad, Seyla Talha Ahsan and Haroon Rashid Aswat. Washington accuses all four of membership of al Qaeda or being involved in acts of international terrorism, the European court, based in Strasbourg, France, said on its website. Aswat faces charges of being Hamza's co-conspirator in setting up the Oregon camp. Ahmad and Ahsan are accused of plotting to kill U.S. nationals, money laundering and giving support to the Taliban and Chechen militants. The European court rejected the suspects' argument that they would not receive a fair trial in the U.S. courts. -- SPA
