Tareq Aziz’s Lawyer demands his release “officially”

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: The lawyer for Iraq‘s former Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Tareq Aziz, sentenced for execution for his role in the case of liquidating the religious parties during the Baath regime, has announced that he had “officially” demanded his release, after presenting legal justifications for same. “I demand the release of Tareq Aziz and all other Iraqi prisoners. I have my doubts regarding all the decisions issued by the High Federal Court in Iraq, as it was established without first receiving official approvals,” Advocate Badi’e Arif told the Jordanian “Al-Dastour” Newspaper on Wednesday. The High Criminal Court in Baghdad had issued a sentence of execution against the former Iraqi officials, Tareq Aziz, Saadoun Shaker, and Abed Hamid Hmoud, charged with the case of “liquidating the religious parties.” Iraqi President Jalal Talabani had told France 24 TV Channel recently that he “won’t sign the decision of execution against Iraq‘s former Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Tareq Aziz.” Tareq Aziz was one of the leading officials during the regime of Iraq‘s former President, Saddam Hussein. He handed himself over to the U.S. forces after Iraq‘s occupation in April, 2003, few days after the downfall of Saddam Hussein‘s regime in March, 2003. SKH/SR 1