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| Iraq |
| "We cannot tell you officially but, unofficially, this person probably escaped," |
| 2010-07-15 |
| The man who kidnapped and killed British aid worker Margaret Hassan in Iraq is thought to have escaped, according to a lawyer for her family. Ali Lutfi Jassar al Rawi was jailed for life last year for his role in one of the most high-profile murders since the war in Iraq started in 2003. Speaking outside an appeal hearing in Baghdad, lawyer Sarmad al Sarraf said the killer had failed to show up at court and his whereabouts were unknown. "We cannot tell you officially but, unofficially, this person probably escaped," Mr Sarraf said the prison director had told the judge. Jassar Al Rawi apparently disappeared during a transfer to a Baghdad jail from one in northern Iraq. A member of the Hassan family's legal team said: "This is a tragedy. How can the state not know where its detainees are?" Ms Hassan was snatched from her car in October 2004 by men in police uniform as she was being driven to work. The 59-year-old - who led a team in Iraq working to provide essential aid to hospitals and helping to restore vital power and water supplies - was shot a month later. The killing sparked international revulsion and widespread sympathy within Iraq. Her body has never been found and the family have been counting on Jassar al Rawi to reveal where it is so she can be given a proper burial. Lawyers for Jassar al Rawi have claimed an alleged confession was extracted under torture. |
| Posted by:GolfBravoUSMC |
| #2 Allowed, hell - helped. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2010-07-15 21:21 |
| #1 Escaped or Allowed to Escape? |
| Posted by: miscellaenous 2010-07-15 13:10 |