Britain deports radical cleric Abu Qatada after legal marathon LONDON (Reuters) - Britain deported radical Muslim cleric Abu Qatada to Jordan on Sunday, ending eight years of government efforts to send him home for trial on charges of alleged terrorism. A plane carrying the cleric left RAF Northolt in west London at around 2.45 a.m. (9:45 p.m. ET), media reported. "This dangerous man has now been removed from our shores to face the courts in his own country," said Home Secretary Theresa May, whose efforts to get Qatada out of the country had been frustrated by a series of legal rulings. "I am glad that this government's determination to see him on a plane has been vindicated and that we have at last achieved what previous governments, Parliament and the British public have long called for," she added in a statement. May said Britain now needed to take a closer look at its human rights laws "to remove the many layers of appeals available to foreign nationals we want to deport." The saga had been embarrassing for Britain's Conservative-led government, which wants to appear tough on security and immigration. Writing by Andrew Heavens; Editing by Matthew Tostevin