Payout for Algerian wrongly accused over 9/11

Jack Straw told Algerian Lotfi Raissi he was eligible for a payout and the amount would be decided by independent assessor Lord Brennan QC.

Last month, the Justice Secretary was given 28 days by the Court of Appeal to decide what should happen.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman said yesterday: "In accordance with the decisions of the Court of Appeal of February 2008 and March 2010, and after careful consideration of all the relevant material available to him, the Justice Secretary, Jack Straw, has notified Mr Raissi that he is eligible for compensation.

"The independent assessor, Lord Brennan QC, will now be asked to consider the amount to be paid to Mr Raissi. Ministers play no part in determining the amount."

Reacting to the news, Mr Raissi said it was the best day of his life.

"I'm completely exonerated now by the Minister of Justice and I'm delighted," he said yesterday. "My life was destroyed, my career was destroyed. I can't even find the words.

"It was hell for me and for the last nine years."

The pilot was arrested in London 10 days after the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Centre in New York and the Pentagon following an extradition request from the FBI.

US officials claimed he had attended flight training with one of the hijackers, and Mr Raissi spent five months in the high security Belmarsh prison before being granted bail. He was cleared of any involvement in the plot the following year.

The 36-year-old said the battle to clear his name was "not a question about the compensation". "I was fighting for justice and what I want at the end of it is an apology."

Mr Raissi's brother Mohamed and wife, Sonia, were also arrested on September 21, 2001.

French-born Mrs Raissi, who worked at Heathrow for Air France, was released without charge after five days. Mohamed Raissi, now 35, was held for 42 hours and also released without charge after being arrested at his home in Hounslow.

He subsequently won a High Court damages claim against the Metropolitan Police. Both he and Mrs Raissi were seeking 150,000 damages, though her claim was dismissed.

According to his solicitors Tuckers, Lofti Raissi wrote to Mr Straw in 2004 asking for compensation as a victim of a miscarriage of justice. He was denied permission to make a claim by the High Court in 2007 but in February 2008 the Court of Appeal found in his favour.

Tuckers yesterday issued a statement from the pilot and revealed he had asked for a meeting with the Justice Secretary about his case and hoped it could be arranged before the election.

Mr Raissi's solicitor Jules Carey said: "The allegations of terrorism were utterly ruinous to him both personally and professionally. Mr Raissi has fought extremely hard to clear his name.

"I believe that the delay in this announcement is because it has been politically difficult for the Justice Secretary to make it. On March 26 the Court of Appeal ordered the Justice Secretary to make a decision by today.

"I sincerely hope this will mark a new chapter in his life and that his rehabilitation will begin."

James Welch, legal director at human rights charity Liberty, said: "The shabby treatment of this innocent man is a chilling reminder of why we all need the protection of the courts."