The High Court in London has ruled against the prosecution or extradition of the former Chilean military ruler, Augusto Pinochet, who has been under arrest in Britain for the last twelve days.

The chief justice, Lord Bingham, said that because he was a former head of state, General Pinochet was clearly entitled to sovereign immunity for criminal acts committed in the course of exercising public functions.

He could not be prosecuted in English courts and his arrest on an extradition warrant had been illegal.

However the general will remain under restriction while an appeal is heard in the highest appeal court, the House of Lords.