Special Report: Tension escalates in Iraq
BAGHDAD, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- An Iraqi Sunni lawmaker
who was accused of masterminding terrorist attacks, including a suicide one in
the Iraqi parliament, rejected the charges on Monday, describing the accusations
as "fabrication".
Mohammed al-Dayni, member of the National Dialogue
Front, told reporters at the parliament building that "these accusations are
fabrications, it is clear they (his bodyguards) have been tortured to tell such
lies on television."
On Sunday, Major General Qasim Atta, a military
spokesman played a video tape for reporters showing Dayni's personal security
chief and his nephew, also one of his bodyguards, confessing that lawmaker Dayni
was involved in terrorist attacks they carried out earlier.
They also said that Dayni helped a suicide bomber by
giving him a paper of authorization to enter the parliament building where he
blew himself up, killing eight people, including an MP from his own party.
"They made the (accusations) because we have been
disclosing serious violation of human rights in Iraqi prisons," Dayni said.
"The allegations are the price that we know we have
to pay forsaking innocent lives, but I never expected they would go so far, to
surpass all constitutional and legal norms," he said.
Atta said that the MP's immunity has not been lifted
yet, as the Iraqi authorities has recently made a request to the Higher Judicial
Council for the issue.
Iraq to lift immunity of Sunni MP for
terrorism
BAGHDAD, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Iraqi
authorities demanded to lift parliament immunity for a Sunni lawmaker accused of
masterminding terrorist attacks, including a suicide one in the Iraqi
parliament, a military spokesman said Sunday.
"We have sent a letter to the Higher Judicial Council
about lifting parliament immunity of Mohammed al-Dayni as he was implicated in
confessions by his personal security chief and his nephew," Maj. Gen. Qasim
Atta, a military spokesman for Baghdad security plan told a news conference. Full story
