El Hiblu 3 accused fights extradition from UK

A young man fighting extradition to Malta on “politically motivated” terrorism charges should be allowed to remain in the UK, a Westminster court heard yesterday.

On Monday, lawyers representing Koni Abdul Kader – one of three men known as the El Hiblu 3, after the vessel involved in the 2019 incident for which they are standing trial – argued their client should not be extradited to Malta.

Yesterday’s hearing marked the start of Abdul Kader’s legal challenge against his extradition, requested by Malta earlier this year following his arrest in the UK on the strength of an international arrest warrant.

Abdul Kader absconded from Malta in August 2023, where, alongside two others – Amara Kromah and Abdalla Bari – he is due to face controversial terrorism charges, accused of hijacking the El Hiblu merchant vessel.

The ship was returning to Libya after rescuing more than 100 migrants at sea when the rescued passengers allegedly hijacked the vessel and ordered its captain to turn around and sail towards Malta.

The case has proved highly controversial, however. While authorities argue the three young men – teenagers at the time – hijacked the vessel, the accused and their supporters say they acted as interpreters trying to calm a volatile situation onboard.

The first hearing in the case took place at Westminster Magistrates court yesterday. Photo: Shutterstock.

'Politically motivated'

UK lawyer James Stansfield, representing Abdul Kader, told Westminster magistrates’ court that the Maltese case was "politically motivated" and a "deliberate choice... to deter migrants from seeking refuge in Europe via Malta or Italy", according to local media reports.

Stansfield told the court that after being rescued, Abdul Kader had told the crew that the rescued migrants feared being returned to Libya, where they believed they would be tortured and sexually assaulted.

Recounting his client’s experiences of being held in a Libyan warehouse with around 300 migrants before the fated voyage, the lawyer said: “Most nights, Mr Abdul Kader says, he heard the cries and protestations of women being raped”.

He said his client had suffered 73 burns to his legs, caused by intentional exposure to molten plastic by the guards when he refused to do unpaid hard labour, and that guards later forced the migrants to board rubber dinghies on which to attempt the crossing.

The lawyer said his client’s stepmother and stepsisters had been put on a different dinghy, and he had not heard from them since, The Times reported.

UK would be 'complicit in the punishment of a child'

Stansfield said Abdul Kader had told the El Hiblu crew that the migrants would rather die than return to Libya and were threatening to throw themselves overboard, and that the chief officer had requested that he, Kromah and Bari act as mediators.

The chief officer later told the three he would need to report that the migrants had taken control of the vessel, or it would not be allowed entry into Malta, the lawyer said.

Stansfield argued there was no public interest in the UK approving the extradition, which would make the UK “complicit in the punishment of a child for seeking to prevent him and 100 others being subjected [to] mistreatment”, according to UK media outlets

"There is no evidence that anyone on board the El Hiblu was hurt or mistreated, and in prosecuting him for terrorism offences, there is a clear attempt by the Maltese authorities to use his case as a deterrent," he added.

Netherlands-based international human rights law professor Helen Duffy, also testifying in court, described the terrorism charges as “unprecedented” and said they “raise human rights concerns”.

Former President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca is among those who have called for the case to be dropped. File photo: Matthew Mirabelli.

Accused 'lied' about his age

Barrister Rosemary Davidson, representing Maltese authorities, said Abdul Kader was at least 22 years old when he arrived in the UK in February last year. She said he had lied about his age, however, leading him to initially be placed in a children’s home and later transferred to the care of a foster family.

UK media reports said Abdul Kader had fled the Ivory Coast aged 15 with his stepmother and two young stepsisters after being attacked by members of their community.

Abdul Kader reached the UK in a lorry, using the identity of his dead brother to claim asylum, before being arrested a year later when his identity became known, according to The Daily Telegraph.

The case continues.

Lost appeal

In January, the El Hiblu 3 lost their appeal to have the case in Malta thrown out, arguing a Maltese court had no jurisdiction over the case as the alleged crimes took place outside Maltese territorial waters and no Maltese citizens were involved. 

A court had dismissed that claim in May last year, but the defendants appealed the decision, which was later upheld by the court of appeal.  

The case has attracted international attention and been the subject of a campaign by international human rights group Amnesty International. 

Prominent local figures led by former President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca have also campaigned for charges against the three to be dropped.

In March, Kromah and Bari, who have remained in Malta, told Times of Malta their time in the country had felt like “living in an open prison” with the court case hanging over them.

Kromah said he felt “very frustrated and so helpless... I have been deprived of my youth,” while Bari, commenting on the case, said authorities would “know they’ve made a big mistake in the end; we’re nothing but immigrants who tried to calm down panic on a boat”.