NCRI – The court in the city of Khalis in Diyala province convened on Thursday to investigate an appeal by the prosecutor of Diyala against the court’s earlier verdict on August 23 ordering the release of 36 Ashraf residents abducted by Iraqi forces in late July. The judge re-endorsed his previous verdict and ordered the release of the 36 once again but they continue to remain in jail for a new bogus accusation.
Following the August court order, the Iraqi Government, in response to a demand by the Iranian regime’s embassy in Baghdad, filed a new complaint through the Immigration Office in Diyala against the 36 charging them with illegal entry and stay in Iraq. The new charge was nothing but a ridiculous pretext for their continued captivity.
Subsequently, all the necessary documents to reject the new charge were submitted to the court in Khalis and it was scheduled to issue its verdict today. For this reason the judge summoned the representative of the Immigration Office to be present at the court today to be heard as the plaintiff in the case. However the relevant authorities refrained from forwarding the letter to the Immigration Office to task a representative to be present at the court hearing. The fact that weekend starts on Friday in Iraq and it is followed by Eid al-Fitr holidays (celebrations marking the end of Ramadan), this is clearly an attempt to delay sentence by the court. This is while the hostages are on their 52nd day of hunger strike and are in critical states. It is evident that such delay could bring them death.
There is no doubt that holding the 36 hostages and delay in their release is the Iranian regime’s demand which does not care for human lives and has no respect for the international public opinion.
The Iranian Resistance holds the Iraqi government responsible for the lives and wellbeing of the hostages and calls on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and the Command of the U.S forces to fulfill their obligations based on the individual agreement signed with all Ashraf residents including the 36 hostages.
The Iranian Resistance calls on the U.S. government, Multi-National Force-Iraq ( MNF-I), Secretary-General of the United Nations, the Security Council, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and all international human rights organizations to take immediate measures to secure the release of the 36 hostages and save their lives.
Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
September 17, 2009