A German court has overturned a ruling which found Osama bin Laden’s suspected ex-bodyguard’s deportation to Tunisia; the first court believed that the man, known as Sami S., would be tortured there. The administrative court in Gelsenkirchen has admitted that there are any reasons to believe that such a threat exists. The judiciary, however, referred to the Tunisian authorities’ assurance they would not treat the man, who is allegedly connected to the al-Qaeda, in this way.
Forty-two-year-old Sami S., who is believed to have served with the banned group, was evicted at the request of the Federal Office for Migration on terror charges. Before that, he had lived in the city of Bochum for some 20 years, receiving in excess of €1,000 in monthly social security payments. He was accused of training in a terrorist camp in Afghanistan, which the man repeatedly denied. However, the court, which considered the deportation illegal, ordered authorities to facilitate Sami’s return to Germany and threatened to hand the local immigration authority a €10,000 fine.
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However, the German authorities persisted in barring the alleged terrorist from re-entering the country, despite that court ruling. A spokesman for the city of Bochum insisted that preventing Sami S. from re-entering the country is in the interest of German national security, adding that the ban is standard procedure under EU immigration law.
Incidentally, shortly after his return to Tunisia, the man was released, as investigators couldn’t piece together sufficient evidence to charge or prosecute him.
His current whereabouts in Tunisia are unknown, but he is reportedly keen on returning to Germany.
*Al-Qaeda is a terrorist group banned in Russia.
