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| Axis of Evil |
| Ex-Iraq army chief faces Danish court |
| 2002-11-20 |
| The former head of Iraq's army has been placed under house arrest in Denmark on charges of using chemical weapons against Kurds. Nizar al-Khazraji, who now lives in Denmark after fleeing Iraq, was detained after a Kurdish refugee apparently recognised him in the street and informed police. Hey, don't I know you? Mr Khazraji, who has been named as a possible successor to Saddam Hussein, is accused over Operation Anfal, a military clampdown on Kurdish areas in the late 1980s. The worst single incident was a chemical weapon air attack on the Kurdish town of Halabjah in 1988. An estimated 5,000 people died. Hand him over to the Kurds, bet they'd like to get their hands on him. The former general, who was head of the armed forces when Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, was placed under house arrest by the court, and must report regularly to police. Mr Khazraji, 64, who lives in Soroe, applied for political asylum in Denmark, but his request was rejected. However, the authorities granted him leave to remain in the country, on the grounds that he could face execution in Iraq. Should face it pretty much anywhere if you ask me. The move against Mr Khazraji appears to have been triggered by an application to travel to Saudi Arabia. Mr Khazraji had recently asked for permission to go there, and the Saudi authorities had agreed to receive him, local news agency Ritzau reports. Had a room booked next door to Idi Amin. But the Danish authorities, who had been investigating the former general for some months, feared that he might leave the country and fail to return. You think? |
| Posted by:Steve |