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Africa North
Arab body urges Bulgaria to respect Libyan accord
2007-07-31
"Do as you are told, kufrs!"
CAIRO (Rooters) - The Arab League urged Bulgaria on Monday to respect a deal with Libya after the European country released six innocent medics wrongly jailed by Libya for infecting hundreds of children with the HIV virus.

Libya on Saturday called on other Arab League members to review their ties with Bulgaria for pardoning and releasing the medics on arrival there, a step which it said violated bilateral accords.

The Arab ministers demanded that the Bulgarian government "meet its commitments and pledges based on the judicial accord between the two countries", said Abderraouf Basti, the head of the Tunisian delegation, reading from the final communique of a meeting of Arab foreign ministers. The ministers also expressed their "regret that such a human tragedy which must not be repeated and whose perpetrators must be punished ... is being politicised".
A reasonable person might read that as a criticism of Libya, but I'm comfortably certain the Arab ministers didn't mean that.
Libya had commuted death sentences on five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor to life in prison after the families of the victims were paid $1 million each in bloodmoney ransom a settlement financed by an international fund.

In a subsequent deal, the European Union promised closer ties with Libya in exchange for custody of the five Bulgarian nurses and one Palestinian doctor, who were flown to Bulgaria this week and immediately pardoned and freed by the president. Bulgarian officials said the pardon was legal.
Posted by:anonymous5089

#8  I sense the presence of Dave D.
Posted by: Palfrey   2007-07-31 18:57  

#7  I wonder what it would take to infest the Arab League with HIV? Sounds like a winner to me.
Posted by: Jack is Back!   2007-07-31 16:54  

#6  French doctors and other investigators determined the HIV pandemic started well BEFORE the medics even set foot in lybia, based on DNA testing of the virus, and believe the spread was due to the horrible lack of hygiena in lybian hospitals (re-used needles, aids-tainted blood for transfusions,...). Also, don't forget that while this is a taboo, aids is quite present in north africa, if only in part due to the sexual repression (many young girls engaging in prostitution, pedophilia havens in morocco, prevalence of unprotected anal sex among teens to preserve virginity, closet homosexuality).
Posted by: anonymous5089   2007-07-31 12:22  

#5  Now, assuming those children actually were infected, how did the infection really happen? Because I'm having a hard time believing it was caused by Bulgarian nurses. Are we entirely certain they weren't set aside so Q'Daffy and his boyz could use/abuse them? Just asking.
Posted by: Abu Uluque6305   2007-07-31 12:10  

#4  Pushing the Bulgars sounds like a bad idea to me.
Posted by: mojo   2007-07-31 11:38  

#3  Oooh, the Arab League's "demanding".
It's so cute when they do that. Like a 2 month old puppy barking at you.
Posted by: tu3031   2007-07-31 11:07  

#2  yeah, straightens em right up.
Posted by: bigjim-ky   2007-07-31 10:58  

#1  Arab body urges Bulgaria to respect Libyan accord

Maybe a little more torture would bring them around. It seems to have worked for the nurses.
Posted by: SteveS   2007-07-31 09:30  

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