US judge rejects appeal against Noriega extradition

MIAMI, Sept 7 (Reuters) A US federal judge today rejected an appeal seeking to block the extradition of deposed Panamanian strongman Manuel Noriega to France after his long prison sentence in Florida ends on Sunday.

The ruling by US District Judge William Hoeveler, though potentially open to further appeals, moved Noriega closer to a jail cell in Paris, where he has been convicted of using illegal drug profits to buy three luxurious apartments.

In his ruling, Hoeveler rejected allegations that France would fail to treat Noriega as a prisoner of war and abide by the protections awarded POWs under the Geneva Conventions.

Noriega, 73, was captured in January 1990 following the US invasion of Panama a month earlier. He was convicted in Hoeveler's court in 1992 on U.S. drug trafficking, racketeering and conspiracy charges.

REUTERS PDT RN0017