THE HAGUE, 20/12/06 - Justice Minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin is allowed to extradite terrorist suspect Wesam al Delaema to the US, the district court in The Hague ruled yesterday. The verdict means the suspected terrorist can no longer fight his extradition to the Americans.

The Dutch Iraqi is the first terrorist suspect to be tried in the US itself following the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks there. His lawyers fear that Al Delaema runs the risk of being tortured in that country. They also say their client will not be given a fair trial.

Hirsch Ballin decided in October that Al Delaema could be extradited to the US. He considered it sufficient that the US had provided guarantees that it would respect his rights. The court in The Hague upheld this yesterday in stating that there is no reason to fear inhuman treatment of the Dutch Iraqi.

The Americans suspect the man of complicity in carrying out an attack on US military in Iraq in 2003. He had travelled to his place of birth, Fallujah, at the time for his wedding. Once there, he claims he was abducted by Iraqi fighters and forced to make films of explosives that were buried on a public highway.

The explosives were to be set off when US soldiers passed by. "I stood by helplessly," the suspect stated earlier. "I was forced, otherwise I would have been beheaded."

Al Delaema set fire to himself earlier in a demonstration in Amsterdam, suffering burns on his hand. He also won a prize in a nationally televised TV game show.