Conor Howard
A Scottish engineer who faces a year in a Qatari jail over a drugs charge has been released on bail in Greece.
Conor Howard says he regrets buying a joke gift for a friend after it led him to be arrested in Qatar and then jailed in Greece nearly a year later.
His problems began when a herb grinder was found in his luggage during an expected stopover in Qatar in October.
He was unaware he was later convicted in his absence, and an international arrest warrant issued.
BBC Scotland interviews Radha Stirling and Kenny MacAskill MP on the arrest of Conor Howard in Corfu
What this demonstrates is Qatar’s misuse of Interpol and how European countries are enabling Middle Eastern countries to export human rights violations, jailing citizens at the whim of countries who are repeat abusers of the trusted Interpol organisation.
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Greek courts order Conor Howard’s bail in Qatar extradition case today
Radha Stirling, CEO of Detained in Dubai and Due Process International, who is representing the family said:
“While we are pleased that Conor Howard has been granted bail and will be home with his family tomorrow, he should never have been locked up in a Corfu jail in the first place. At the whim of a country notorious for Interpol & extradition abuse, a European country has been used as a conduit to unfairly detain a British national.
“Qatar has been responsible for a number of arrests and detentions inside the EU over the past 24 months. In none of these cases, were the victims extradited and in all cases I have dealt with, the victims were released and removed from Interpol’s database.
“Although Conor has been finally granted bail, Greece has allowed Qatar until the 4th of November to present further evidence, meaning Conor is not allowed to return to Scotland and still risks being extradited to a desert prison.
“What the Howard family has had to endure is incredibly taxing, both emotionally and financially. While they are lucky to have so much support, they will not rest easy until this nightmare is over”.