Iraq has its sovereignty, but America is still running the show

[al bupp]

As many here said at the time it was declared, "sovereignty" for Iraq is almost meaningless. From the UK's Telegraph:

Just one sentence demonstrated yesterday where the real power lies in Baghdad: not with the internationally recognised "sovereign" Iraqi government, but with the American "embassy".

Iraq's justice minister announced on Tuesday night that Rihab Taha, a woman scientist known as "Dr Germ", would be released from prison. The case of another scientist known as "Mrs Anthrax", Huda Ammash, was under discussion, he said.

American and British officials were caught by surprise, and feared that this would be seen as a concession to terrorists who had beheaded two American hostages and were threatening to murder a third, the British businessman Kenneth Bigley.

Within a day, a US embassy spokesman in Baghdad set the record straight on Dr Germ and Mrs Anthrax: "Both of them are in the physical and legal custody of the multinational forces, there is no imminent release and these cases are constantly under review."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/09/23/wirq223.xml&sSheet=/news/2004/09/23/ixnewstop.html

[markus]

1. This was also reported on NPR - ATC last night

The U.S. has control and will decide when these prisoners are released.

[seemslikeadream]

2. "Mrs Anthrax"

This photo taken on Feb. 19, 2003 shows Doctor Huda Salih Mahdi Ammash, Iraq's top biological weapons scientist who is nicknamed "Mrs Anthrax". Ammash was thought to be one of the two women imprisoned in Iraq by US forces. Militants were demanding the release of Ammash and another female prisoner, in exchange for the lives of one US hostage and another British hostage. An Iraqi militant group has kidnapped two US hostages and one British hostage. According to report of an Islamic website, one US hostage has been killed on Sept. 20. (Xinhua Photo/Gong Bing)

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-09/22/content_2005385.htm

:hi:

[al bupp]

3. Why Are They Still Holding "Mrs. Anthrax?"

Patrick Cockburn says:

Iraqi Scientists Detained Despite Lack of WMDs

The US has detained for far too long Iraqi scientists arrested last year in the belief that they would provide information about Saddam Hussein's WMD, according to an Iraqi government source.

Even when US investigators concluded that no such weapons existed the scientists were not freed because the Americans feared their release would be seen as a tacit admission that Iraq had no WMD. This may explain why the US embassy in Iraq is determined to detain Dr Rihab Taha, who once worked on biological weapons, while the Iraqi justice ministry says it sees no good reason for her continued detention.

More at: http://www.counterpunch.org/patrick09232004.html

So, the Iraqi's want to release her, but the US overrules this. This is the Bush admin's idea of "sovereignty". :eyes:

:hi: back