UK Parliament ratifies Abu Qatada treaty

Britain has ratified a treaty agreed with Jordon intended to pave the way for the deportation of radical Muslim cleric Abu Qatada.
"We welcome the approval of the treaty by both the UK and Jordon Parliaments. Our focus remains on seeing Qatada on a plane to Jordon at the earliest opportunity," the Home Office said today.
The treaty will not come into force until other administrative formalities are completed.
The document must also be published in an official newspaper in Jordon and there must be an exchange of diplomatic letters between the two countries.
The treaty could then lead to the deportation of the 53-year-old cleric next week.

Qatada has already indicated he will not challenge deportation if the treaty is passed because the document guarantees him a fair trial.

Jordan's Parliament had approved the UK-Jordan Treaty on Mutual Legal Assistance earlier this month.
Britain has been trying to deport Qatada since 2005, and he has been detained and released several times during the legal battle.
He arrived in Britain and claimed asylum in 1993, but became notorious for preaching radical views.
In 1999, the cleric was convicted of terrorism charges in his absence in Jordon and sentenced to life in prison.
Qatada is currently in London's Belmarsh Prison after breaching a bail condition in March, which restricted the use of mobile phones and other communication devices.