Qatada Expected Back In Jordan On Sunday

Abu Qatada will finally be deported from Britain this weekend, according to a Jordanian government official.

The official told news agency AFP that the radical cleric is expected to be back in his home country on Sunday.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the source said: "Abu Qatada is expected to leave Britain in the early hours of Sunday and should arrive in the morning in Jordan on the same day."

Hopes of the cleric's swift removal rose on Tuesday after Jordan fully ratified a new treaty with Britain about his treatment.

The document guarantees evidence that may have been obtained through torture will not be used at trial.

Once Qatada is served with fresh deportation papers, he will have 72 hours to appeal and could continue his eight-year legal battle.

But his lawyers indicated earlier this year that he would go home willingly once the guarantee was in place.

Qatada, once called Osama Bin Laden's right-hand man in Europe, is wanted in Jordan on terrorism charges.

He claimed asylum in the UK 20 years ago but was convicted in his absence in 1999 and sentenced to life in prison.

His attempt to use human rights laws to avoid deportation was originally rejected in the UK but upheld by European judges.

Home Secretary Theresa May decided to seek the guarantee from Jordan to push the case forward.

Finally sending Qatada home and ending a legal saga that has cost taxpayers more than £1.7m would be a major coup for the senior Tory.

He is currently in custody in Belmarsh Prison after being arrested in March for allegedly breaching his bail conditions.