Khaberni - Lawyers for the extremist cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri, who is held in the high-security "Supermax" American prison, have filed a new appeal for his compassionate release because of his deteriorating health condition.
After the US District Court rejected his request for compassionate release or a reduction of his sentence in March, his lawyers submitted a new 81-page appeal against this decision, registered in the name of Mustafa Kamel Mustafa, his real name.
In the appeal, the lawyers explained that he is subject to special administrative procedures that allow him to communicate only with them, and during recording calls, with some of his immediate family members.
The appeal claims he is held in a cell "designed for a person wheelchair-bound and not for a person who can walk but has no hands," as he lost his left hand and an eye during the period between 1991 and 1993 approximately, while his right hand is partially damaged or limited in movement.
The appeal also states that "his limbs are painful and injured due to the sharp edges of the taps, and he cannot clean himself after defecating in a cell that does not contain bidets." It also "deprives him of using an electric toothbrush, which has led to considerable tooth decay and his need for dental implants and he relies on his teeth to open food packages and perform his daily tasks."
The appeal added that he "also becomes blind in his other eye, due to inadequate treatment", noting that earlier this year, Hamza went on a hunger strike after a new guard transferred him from cell 511 to cell 300.
The appeal said: "Cell 300 does not contain, for example, a suitable toilet for his disability, so he cannot clean himself properly, and there is no nurse or assistant to help with personal hygiene."
It added: "In response to his hunger strike, he was returned to cell 511, but he was deprived of non-court-approved phone calls for a long period, which means that he will not be allowed to speak with any of his family members until at least late January 2026".
The appeal also pointed to the European Convention on Human Rights, claiming that if the European Court of Human Rights had known he would spend his sentence under these conditions in the Supermax prison, he would not have been extradited from the United Kingdom more than a decade ago to face trial.
In March, Judge Annalisa Torristo rejected Hamza's request for compassionate release or a reduced sentence, saying she was not convinced there was a "change of heart" since the terrorist crimes he committed.
She said that Hamza is likely to "continue to support and inspire others to commit acts of violence" if released.
His lawyers had requested to modify his sentence to be the time he has already served in prison, in addition to five years under supervised release.
It is worth noting that Abu Hamza was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2015 in New York for his role in the kidnapping of 16 tourists in Yemen in 1998, in addition to charges related to providing support to Osama bin Laden's network and setting up an armed training camp in Oregon. Since then, he has spent most of his time in solitary confinement in the prison known as "Alcatraz of the Rockies", among infamous inmates like drug lord El Chapo and the Boston Marathon bombers.
According to the "Daily Mail", "He was once one of the most notorious hate preachers in the Western world, inciting young extremists with fiery speeches."
