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Mullah Krekar's group tied to slaughter,
Norway
14.6.2005
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The
guerrilla group once headed by Mullah Krekar, who's
currently battling a deportation order in an Oslo
court, reportedly cut the throats of dozens of
prisoners before fleeing US troops in 2003. The
chilling report came from a Norwegian official who
visited northern Iraq the same year.
By that time, Krekar had enjoyed refugee status in
Norway for years but had traveled back and forth to
Iraq as head of the radical group Ansar al-Islam. He
wasn't there, however, when the alleged slaughter
occurred.
Sidsel Wiborg, a top state official dealing with
immigration issues, traveled to Krekar's home turf
to brief herself in case his deportation appeal
landed on her desk. She testified at his deportation
trial Monday that she and other Norwegian
immigration officials were shown a prison in Biyarra
where Ansar al-Islam had held prisoners.
Wiborg said the Norwegians were told that Ansar
al-Islam members cut the throats of 43 persons at
the prison before running away from US troops.
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Mullah Krekar is battling a deportation order in
court.
PHOTO: HEIKO JUNGE / SCANPIX |
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"The prison has apparently been torn down now, but
it was still there when we visited," Wiborg said in
the Oslo court.
Krekar, who's considered a threat to national
security because of his ties to Ansar al-Islam,
flatly denied Wiborg's claims. His defense attorney,
Brynjar Meling, also criticized Wiborg's source of
information, which was the security chief for the
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), an arch rival of
Ansar al-Islam.
Wiborg said she was told that the Norwegians could
"knock on any door" in the neighborhood of the
former prison, and ask others what had happened
there.
Krekar's trial started earlier this month.
Government minister Erna Solberg, who issued his
deportation order, was expected to testify on
Wednesday.
www.aftenposten.no
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