Spanish prosecutor backs US extradition of Cox heir James 'Fergie' Chambers

Right · 1A Spanish prosecutor, Juan Hernandez Villalba, told Spain's High Court on Friday 13 November that he supports a US request to extradite James 'Fergie' Chambers (James Cox Chambers Jr), a pro-Palestinian donor and heir to the Cox family media fortune. 1 Right · 1The extradition request lists riot, conspiracy to commit riot and international money laundering, the court heard. 1 Right · 1The prosecutor said the request is "not based on mere ideology or political statements, but on an organised, financed and executed action that caused significant material damage". 1

Mixed · 2Chambers was arrested on 10 July while on holiday in Ibiza at the request of US authorities, following an Interpol Red Notice, and has been held since; Al Jazeera reports they were looking for a school for their son at the time. 1 2 Mixed · 2The riot charges relate to 2023 protests by pro-Palestinian activists against the Israeli defence firm Elbit Systems in New Hampshire; Al Jazeera says two of the three US charges stem from allegations that Chambers funded the legal fees of activists arrested at the protests, and that Chambers could face up to 30 years in prison. 1 2 Left · 1On the money-laundering charge, Al Jazeera reports the US case centres on an alleged $7.5m wired from a US bank account to Tunisia, where Chambers then lived, allegedly used to support Hamas; the outlet also says the Hamas allegation is only apparently linked to that charge, and the defence says Chambers has not been charged with any terrorism offence. 2

Right · 1Chambers told the court they were present at the protests but caused no damage, and said they transferred their own money to Tunisia to fund their company's sponsorship of the club Club Africain and a gym; Chambers also said: "All I'm asking for is justice, reason, and mercy." 1 Mixed · 2Chambers denies wrongdoing, has applied for asylum in Spain on grounds of political persecution, and on Friday refused to consent to extradition; under Spanish law extradition cannot proceed if a request is found to be politically motivated. 1 2 Right · 1The defence lawyer Aitor Martinez argued that even those who caused damage in New Hampshire were convicted of misdemeanours carrying a 60-day sentence, below the one-year threshold of the US-Spain extradition treaty. 1

Left · 1Al Jazeera reports that Chambers' lawyers say the Spanish translation of the US complaint made the allegations seem more serious, for example changing "direct action" to "direct violence", adding "three fires" not in the original, rendering smoke canisters' "activation" as "detonation", and changing "global terrorism game" to "global terrorism activities". 2 Mixed · 2The US Department of Justice has declined to comment on the case. 1 2 Mixed · 2The court will rule in coming weeks, and government spokesperson Elma Saiz has said the cabinet will then make the final determination; Chambers' lawyers say they will appeal if the court backs extradition. 1 2

Left · 1Chambers' partner, the actress Stella Schnabel, urged Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to expedite the asylum claim, warning that otherwise Donald Trump could set a precedent that "criminalises solidarity with the Palestinian people". 2 Mixed · 2The case is politically sensitive: Spain's Socialist-led government is known for a strong pro-Palestinian stance that has drawn rebuke from the Trump administration, and Al Jazeera notes an early election on 29 November that polls suggest the conservative People's Party will win. 1 2 Mixed · 2Chambers, 46, is a son of Cox Enterprises part-owner James Cox Chambers; Al Jazeera says Chambers sold stock back to the family worth about $250m in 2003 and has funded about 100 projects in 20 countries, while the legal team told Reuters of over $1 million donated to humanitarian causes in Gaza and legal fees paid for some Palestine Action members. 2 1