When an Islamic terrorist with British links is interrogated overseas and released, he knows what to do next: sue MI6. This technique was pioneered by Binyam Mohamed, an Ethiopian whose Afghan sojourn took him to Guantánamo Bay. He wanted to see papers held by the CIA, who refused him, so he sued the Brits to see what CIA papers they might have access to. As every self-respecting jihadi knows, British spooks are stuck in a legal loophole: to defend themselves in court risks releasing classified documents that could blow agents or betray sources. Refusing to fight leaves them no choice but to settle out-of-court, turning their opponents into millionaires.
At least two dozen Islamists have now tried this rather lucrative game of spy-catching and it’s easy to imagine how the spooks are tiring of writing so many cheques. The loophole could be closed with a relatively straightforward legal fix: sensitive documents could be shown in private to a judge, who then makes a decision.
This process is used in certain immigration cases, when the case for deportation is made by our men in the long raincoats. Applying it to the handful of cases in which spies are sued ought to be quick and simple, but it has taken David Cameron into the battleground between liberty and security, one of the most frenzied areas of political debate. Read More
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