Osama Bin Laden's henchman has been released from prison due to his obesity, which puts his life in danger during the coronavirus pandemic. In 2015, Adel Abdel Bary was sentenced by a US court to 25 years in jail, but was released at the end of November, because he received credit for the years he spent in jail in Britain before he was extradited to the United States.
His lawyers asked the judge to grant mercy to the former terrorist because he was suffering from morbid obesity and asthma, which drastically increases his chances to die from COVID-19. Court records show Adel Abdel Bary, who on behalf of al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for the 1998 bombings of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, weighs 230 pounds (104 kilograms).
Adel Abdel Bary, terroriste égyptien, spin doctor d'Oussama Ben Laden, de retour dans les rues du Royaume-Uni, après avoir été libéré d'une prison américaine car il était trop gros - https://t.co/pETbmMEYKt pic.twitter.com/UhL1kW6yHE
— Fdesouche.com est une revue de presse (@F_Desouche) December 11, 2020
"Defendant's obesity and somewhat advanced age make COVID-19 significantly more risky to him than to the average person", US District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan wrote in granting the release.
He was released from custody on 8 December and according to The Times returned to the United Kingdom on 10 December, where he reunited with his wife Ragaa, who reportedly lives in a $1.3 million mansion.
Why Did Britain Accept the Terrorist?
According to The Telegraph, the reason why Bin Laden's henchman returned to Britain is that former UK Prime Minister David Cameron struck a deal with the United States. Prior to his arrest and jail sentence Adel Abdel Bary had received political asylum in Britain in the 1990s. A unnamed source told The Telegraph that Cameron's government agreed to take Bary back, because London feared that by revoking his asylum they would breach his rights, as he can't go back to Egypt, which he fled as a political refugee.
The issue here is that Bary cannot go back to Egypt, where he will likely be tortured and killed as he was previously accused of plotting a terrorist attack at the Khan el-Khalili market in the capital Cairo.
The Times said that upon his return to the United Kingdom he became a "priority" for police and security.
An unnamed security source told The Sun that Adel Abdel Bary's return is "a huge headache" for UK Home Secretary Priti Patel. "She is intent on ridding the country of threats, but here's a notorious terrorist dumped right on her doorstep", the source told The Sun.
The Sun also wrote, citing unnamed sources, that his return to the United Kingdom will cost the country's taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars as he will reportedly be granted security monitoring for his safety.
Bary's release caused outrage among the relatives of victims.
"Just serving a sentence doesn't mean that a person has been rehabilitated, doesn't mean that their core thinking has changed. This is a person who can still do harm in the world", Edith Bartley, whose father and younger brother were among the victims of terrorist attacks in which Bary was involved.
Commenting on the terrorist's release, his lawyer R. Andrew Painter said the following:
"After all this time, all Mr Bary wants is to enjoy a quiet life with his family".
