NCRI – Iraqi Committee in Defense of Ashraf comprised of 104 Iraqi political, academic and tribal personalities in a statement condemned the political pressure and influence exerted by the Iraqi government to prevent freedom of 36 Camp Ashraf residents who have been taken hostage by Iraqi forces.
The statement reads: On Monday, August 24,one month after the arbitrary arrests of the 36 refugees during the brutal attack against Camp Ashraf on July 28 and 29, a court in the City of Khalis, issued a verdict calling for their release due to lack of any charges against them. The verdict was also approved by the prosecutor’s office in the city.
NCRI – Iraqi Committee in Defense of Ashraf comprised of 104 Iraqi political, academic and tribal personalities in a statement condemned the political pressure and influence exerted by the Iraqi government to prevent freedom of 36 Camp Ashraf residents who have been taken hostage by Iraqi forces.
The statement reads: On Monday, August 24,one month after the arbitrary arrests of the 36 refugees during the brutal attack against Camp Ashraf on July 28 and 29, a court in the City of Khalis, issued a verdict calling for their release due to lack of any charges against them. The verdict was also approved by the prosecutor’s office in the city.
According to the verdict the detainees should have been released immediately and transferred to their residence in Ashraf, but surprisingly the implementation of the ruling was obstructed by the Prime Minister’s office in Baghdad and their case was referred to Baaqoba for appeal.
The overt political manipulation in order to prevent the release of these innocent refugees is taking place while all the detainees are considered as "protected persons" under the Fourth Geneva Convention and even based on the Iraqi law they have been detained unlawfully for more than a month and an urgent international campaign for their immediate and unconditional realease is underway. Amnesty International has issued a numebr of «Uregent Action» appeals which calls on Iraqi government to release them.
Iraqi Committee in Defense of Ashraf, while condemning such obvious and embarrassing exertion of influence and by Iraqi government on the judicial system of the country regards that as a dangerous precedent which questions the independence of the judicial system. They stressed that all the crimes committed in Camp Ashraf and the illegal interferences which have followed must be considered provocations by Iranian regime and must stop decisively.
Iraqi Committee in Defense of Ashraf, warns about the health of the 36 refugees, who have been on hunger strike for more than a month while they are severely wounded. The committee holds the Iraqi Government and Prime Minister Maliki personally responsible for the occurrence of any possible human disaster and calls upon all national and democratic forces, independent judges, the true representatives of people in the Iraqi Parliament and human rights activists to end this injustice.
We now believe that not only the 36 innocent and defenseless refugees, but also the independence of judicial system has been taken hostage by a non-Iraqi desire and will. A dangerous matter that threatens the most fundamental democratic principles of this country thus must be stopped with utmost urgency.
