Jack Straw faces legal action over Libya rendition claims Jack Straw: civil action seeks to examine former foreign secretary's role in Belhadj's return to Libya. A Libyan military commander is taking legal action against Jack Straw following allegations the former foreign secretary agreed his illegal rendition. Lawyers representing Abdel Hakim Belhadj confirmed legal papers had been served on the Labour MP after reports suggested he had signed documents that allowed the rebel to be sent back to his homeland in 2004. Belhadj, 45, claims he had been living in exile in Beijing, China, before being detained with his wife, Fatima, while en route to the UK where they were trying to seek asylum. He alleges they were sent back to Libya - which was under the rule of Muammar Gaddafi - and imprisoned and tortured. The civil action, which is against Straw personally, seeks to examine his exact role and claim damages from him for the trauma involved. Belhadj's lawyers, Leigh Day & Co, said they sent the MP a letter yesterday asking him to produce a number of documents. These include papers mentioned in a Sunday Times article that alleged Straw signed off the rendition, as well as his diaries, memoirs and notes from March 2004 onwards. Fellow Libyan and former Gaddafi opponent Sami Al Saadi, who claims to have shared the same fate as Belhadj, is also taking legal action against Straw.