The owner of the Ritz should not be allowed to claim state immunity from prosecution over links to jihadi terrorists, a London court was told yesterday.
Abdulhadi Mana al-Hajri is among leading Qatari individuals and institutions accused of using a variety of clandestine means, including money laundering, to send hundreds of millions of dollars to the outlawed terrorist organisation Nusra Front during the Syrian civil war.
Claims against the Qataris, including the Ritz owner and Qatar National Bank, were filed in the High Court last year by nine Syrian refugees who say they were the victims of torture, financial losses and religious and ethnic persecution.
They are seeking to have the case against them dismissed this week on the ground that the High Court has no jurisdiction to hear the claims because they have state immunity.
The claimants lawyer, Tom Otty QC, said this could not apply because the claim alleged that the illegal activity was authorised by Qatar’s head of state.
