Court to rule on extradition of man wanted for terrorism

A High Court judge has said he will return judgement next week in the judicial review application brought by a man facing extradition to the United States on international terrorism charges.

Algerian-born Irish citizen Ali Charaf Damache (48), who has been living in Ireland for a decade, is wanted in the United States to face charges relating to the conspiracy to provide material support for terrorists and attempted identity theft to facilitate an act of international terrorism.

The High Court heard the US alleges it has evidence that Mr Damache conspired with American woman Colleen LaRose - who used the online name “Jihad Jane” - and others to create a terror cell in Europe capable of targeting both US and western European citizens.

It is alleged Mr Damache - who went by the username “the black flag” - also participated in a conspiracy to transfer a passport stolen from a US citizen to an individual in Pakistan whom the conspirators believed to be a member of Al Qaeda.

Mr Damache is seeking judicial review to challenge the DPP’s decision not to prosecute him in Ireland for the offences.

The extradition case has been adjourned until after judgement is returned in the judicial review application.

Mr Justice John Edwards today said that he had made “very substantial progress” toward completing the judgement and would put the matter in for January 22nd, here “without fail there will be a judgement”.

If convicted of the charges against him as laid out by an indictment returned in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in October 2011, Mr Damache faces a potential sentence of 45 years in prison.