A suspected al Qaida leader and his family are living in a safe house in northern England where they are being looked after by British intelligence, it was claimed today.

Muslim cleric Abu Qatada, said to be Osama bin Laden's ambassador in Europe, was sentenced to death in his absence in Jordan and is accused by the US, Spain, France and Algeria of being a key influence in the September 11 attacks.

Mystery has surrounded his whereabouts since last December when he disappeared from his home in Acton, west London, after the government introduced anti-terrorism laws that could have seen him interred.

Now senior European intelligence officials have told Time magazine that Abu Qatada and his family are being lodged, fed and clothed by British intelligence services somewhere in northern England.

''The deal is that Abu Qatada is deprived of contact with extremists in London and Europe but can't be arrested or expelled because no one officially knows where he is,'' said the source.

''The British win because the last thing they want is a hot potato they can't extradite for fear of al Qaida reprisals but whose presence contradicts London's support of the war on terror.''

The magazine said the claims were corroborated by French authorities. British security services officials declined to comment to Time.

The Home Office told PA: ''We do not comment on security issues.''

In April the Sunday Times speculated that Abu Qatada had turned ''supergrass'' for MI5, a theory fuelled by the arrests of several Muslim extremists in Germany who had met the Palestinian refugee and were said to be on the brink of an attack.

Abu Qatada, also as Omar Abu Omar, has appeared on the list of suspected Islamic terrorists issued by the United Nations after September 11.

Zacarias Moussaoui, the so-called 20th hijacker, is said to have attended prayers led by Abu Qatada at a community centre near Baker Street when they both lived in London.

Spanish Judge Baltasar Garzon, who questioned al Qaida suspects in Madrid, last year described Abu Qatada as the ''spiritual head of the Mujahideen in Britain'' and said he had links with terror suspects in Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, and Britain as well as Spain.

Speaking on Radio 4's Today programme after the judge's comments, Qatada said: ''I am a Muslim who believes in Islam. I believe in Jihad and I believe in the necessity of liberating our nation and freeing it from bondage.''

Bin Laden ''had a point'' in his desire to rid his home country, Saudi Arabia, of any American influence, he added.