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Iraq may consider pardon for thousand prisoners
BAGHDAD - The Iraqi government is considering pardons for several thousand people convicted of insurgency-related offenses as a move toward national reconciliation, Iraqi officials said Monday. As a first step, a committee is being formed to study the legal aspects, including what offenses might be excluded and whether any pardon would require parliamentary approval.

But Sunni lawmaker Nasser Al Ani, who is in charge of President Jalal Talabani’s office, said any pardons must be in line with the Iraqi constitution, which could require parliamentary approval. That could complicate the process because different Sunni and Shia factions would haggle over the percentages of each sectarian group covered by pardons.

The officials stressed that the pardons would be limited to those convicted of offenses rather than the tens of thousands held without charge by both US and Iraqi forces.
Depends on the offenses of course. The ones convicted of booming the wimmins and the kiddies should stay in jug, as should the IED-makers. I'm a little concerned that this is the usual Arab kiss and make-up, letting really bad boyz back onto the street.
Sunni politicians, notably Vice President Tariq Al Hashemi, have been pushing the government to release thousands of detainees, most of whom are believed to be Sunnis. Sunni leaders believe the recent Sunni revolt against Al Qaeda offers an opportunity to win over the majority of the religious community most hostile to both the US military presence and the Shia-led Iraqi government.
Posted by: Steve White 2007-12-11
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=212560