Tuesday, December 20th ~ Maliki gives VP two days to prove he is not involved in parliament attack or face trial ...

(File photo ~ December 21, 2010, Hashemi left and Maliki right .. what's the saying? keep your friends close but keep your enemies closer?)

Thank you very much to Kellyann for the following news article ...

18/12/2011

Maliki gives VP two days to prove he is not involved in parliament attack or face trial

Baghdad, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has given an Iraqi Vice-President Tariq al-Hashimi a period of two days to prove his innocence, after he was accused of financing armed actions, or face arrest and trial.

Mr. al-Hashimi has been accused of financing armed attacks on on the Iraqi Council of Representatives that left one dead and four others injured among them a Kurdish MP.

Continues ...read more ..

The accusations against the VP came after security forces in Baghdad arrested three of al-Hashimi's guards on charges of carrying out the attack on the parliament.

"Al-Hashimi has sent former Iraqi parliament speaker Mohammed al-Mashhadani to inform Maliki that he has nothing to do with the parliament," said Ahmed al-Shaihani, an Iraqi government adviser, "He has requested a period of two days to prove his innocence.. and Maliki has agreed to give him two days" Baghdad Operations Command said earlier that it would display videoed confessions of the men who had carried out the attack with the help of a "senior" official without naming the official. The airing of the confession was delayed till the involvement of al-Hashimi is checked.

There were reports that al-Hashimi an several of his aides have tried to fly to Sulaimaniyah from Baghdad but have been intercepted by Iraqi security forces in the airport.

A member of the National Coalition (NC) bloc in parliament Hussein al-Asadi said yesterday that a court in Baghdad had already issued an arrest warrant for Mr al-Hashimi on "terror charges"

The parliamentary committee tasked with probing into the parliament bombing last month said earlier that it will disclose the details of the blast and who stood behind it. "The results will surprising and nobody will expect it" the committee said.

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