Qatada's legal team claims that judges at the European Court of Human Rights were wrong three months ago when they ruled that he would not be at risk of torture if returned to Jordan, a court spokeswoman said.

The court's Grand Chamber will decide whether to hear his appeal, but the radical cleric, once described by a judge as Osama bin Laden's right hand man in Europe, cannot be deported until the court has reached a decision.

The move is separate from any appeal Qatada's legal team may make over Tuesday's decision by Home Secretary Theresa May to continue with his deportation after receiving assurances from Jordan that evidence gained through torture would not be used against him.

Instead it relates to a different strand of the original decision of the Strasbourg-based court which found that the 51-year-old would not face being tortured himself if deported.

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