Seif Al Islam: HIV Medics to Return to Bulgaria in Days
Politics | July 20, 2007, Friday
Seif Al Islam, son of Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, said he expects the six foreign medics, sentenced to life jail in a high-profile HIV trial, to return to Bulgaria in a few days. Photo by ambassadors.net
The son of Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi said he expects the six foreign medics, sentenced to life jail in a high-profile HIV trial, to return to Bulgaria in a few days.
"The medics will leave Libya the moment all details [about the implementation] of the prisoner exchange agreement [between Bulgaria and Libya] are cleared up," Seif Al Islam said in an interview for the Arabic daily newspaper Al Hayat, as cited by DPA.
In his words the five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor will return on Bulgarian soil next Wednesday at the latest, when France's President Nicolas Sarkozy is expected to arrive in Libya, the first stop of his first African tour.
Sarkozy is expected to mediate in the dispute between the two countries.
Bulgaria approached Libya with a request to transfer the five nurses and a Palestinian doctor with a Bulgarian citizenship to Sofia after the highest judicial body of the North African country commuted their death sentences for life jail.
The two countries have an agreement on exchange of prisoners, which provides the legal basis for the request. Although Libyan authorities can refuse the transfer requests, there are technically no impassable obstacles in the way of the successful resolution of the issue.
The medics have been jailed for more than eight years already on charges of deliberately triggering a HIV outbreak at a Benghazi children's hospital.
"The medics will leave Libya the moment all details [about the implementation] of the prisoner exchange agreement [between Bulgaria and Libya] are cleared up," Seif Al Islam said in an interview for the Arabic daily newspaper Al Hayat, as cited by DPA.
In his words the five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor will return on Bulgarian soil next Wednesday at the latest, when France's President Nicolas Sarkozy is expected to arrive in Libya, the first stop of his first African tour.
Sarkozy is expected to mediate in the dispute between the two countries.
Bulgaria approached Libya with a request to transfer the five nurses and a Palestinian doctor with a Bulgarian citizenship to Sofia after the highest judicial body of the North African country commuted their death sentences for life jail.
The two countries have an agreement on exchange of prisoners, which provides the legal basis for the request. Although Libyan authorities can refuse the transfer requests, there are technically no impassable obstacles in the way of the successful resolution of the issue.
The medics have been jailed for more than eight years already on charges of deliberately triggering a HIV outbreak at a Benghazi children's hospital.
» Subscribe to receive alerts by email for any of these keywords.
Share:
