Hassan v UK

On 16th September 2014 the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights handed down judgment in an important case concerning the application of the European Convention on Human Rights to cases of international armed conflict.

The Grand Chamber held that the Convention could apply even during the active combat phase of hostilities and that the Applicant, Mr Hassan, was within the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom notwithstanding the fact that he was detained at a detention facility in Iraq under the joint control of the United Kingdom and the United States of America. The Grand Chamber nevertheless rejected Mr Hassan’s substantive complaint under Article 5 of the Convention on the basis that the Convention could be interpreted by reference to the detention provisions of international humanitarian law as reflected in the Geneva Conventions. More details of the judgment and an analysis of the issues raised are available here http://justsecurity.org/15942/reflections-hassan-uk-mixed-bag-liberty/#more-15942

James Eadie QC acted for the United Kingdom.
Timothy Otty QC, Tom Hickman and Tom Cleaver acted for Mr Hassan.