House of Lords ruling on the Belmarsh detainees 16 Dec 2004

The judgment in which the highest court in the UK, the law lords, declare by a majority of 8-1 the indefinite detention of foreign ’terrorist suspects’ incompatible with the Human Rights Act and hence the European Convention on Human Rights. Lord Bingham said the rules were incompatible as they allowed detentions «in a way that discriminates on the ground of nationality or immigration status» by justifying detention without trial for foreign suspects but not British citizens.

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House of Lords ruling on the Belmarsh detainees