(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - The Iraqi vice president, who is currently in İstanbul, said he did not have direct talks with Turkish officials following Interpol's red notice, but rather had "indirect talks." "Statements by high level Turkish officials [against the arrest warrant] confirmed Turkey's support for me. I am thankful to Turkey on this issue," Hashemi told a Turkish TV station on Wednesday. "I hope this political problem [in Iraq] is settled soon."
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said at a news conference in Rome while on a trip to Italy that he believed Hashemi would return to Iraq after receiving medical treatment. "Hashemi continues with his initiatives regarding his legal problems," Erdoğan said. "We gave him all kinds of support on this issue and we will continue to do so."
Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdağ also commented on Turkey's stance on the Interpol notice on Hashemi, openly stating that Turkey will not turn over the Sunni politician to Iraq. "We would not hand in someone who we support," he said in Parliament on Wednesday.
Hashemi fled Baghdad in December when the Iraqi government issued an arrest warrant for him, accusing him of running death squads that targeted peoples, government officials and security forces. He denies the charges and escaped.
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