NIZAR TRABELSI EXHAUSTS LAST BELGIAN JUDICIAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L BRUSSELS 000888 SIPDIS STATE PASS EUR/WE AND EUR/PGI E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/25/2019 TAGS: PTER CJAN CVIS KCRM BE SUBJECT: NIZAR TRABELSI EXHAUSTS LAST BELGIAN JUDICIAL OPTION REF: BRUSSELS 260 Classified By: Acting DCM Richard M. Eason for reasons 1.4 (B) and (D). ¶1. (U) Belgium's highest court, the Cour de Cassation, ruled June 24 against Nizar Trabelsi's appeal to block a U.S. request to extradite him to the United States. The Court found no irregularities in the U.S. extradition request. Trabelsi has exhausted all Belgian legal options, and the Belgian Minister of Justice Stefaan De Clerck may now make a decision on whether to grant the U.S. request. Trabelsi may attempt to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, but it is unclear whether he has the procedural ability to do so. ¶2. (C) Post believes the GOB will grant the U.S. extradition request to get Trabelsi out of the country. Officials fear that Trabelsi may attempt to kill a prison employee to prevent his extradition. Were he to commit a crime in Belgium, he would be tried in Belgium, delaying any extradition to the United States. However, the next administrative review of Trabelsi's current prison sentence under the Belgian judicial process is April 2010; this is the earliest opportunity at which Belgian prosecutors will be able to file a request to suspend the remainder of his ten-year sentence and recommend his extradition to the United States. BUSH .