Jordan has not received new warrant for arrest of Saddam daughter

Apr 7, 2010, 18:16 GMT

Amman - The Jordanian government has not received any new warrant from Interpol for the arrest of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's elder daughter, Raghad, who lives in Amman, Minister of State for Media Affairs Nabil Sharif said Wednesday.

'We did not receive any notice in this respect so far. The only communication regarding this issue dates back to 2006,' Sharif told a weekly press conference.

He was responding to Iraqi press reports earlier this week that the Interpol had issued a new arrest warrant for Raghad at the request of the Iraqi authorities which accused her of 'financing terrorism' in Iraq.

Raghad and her sister Rana and their children took refuge in Jordan after the downfall of Saddam's regime in 2003 following the US-led invasion of Iraq.

Officials later said that Saddam's two daughters and their children were in Jordan as guests of King Abdullah II.

An Interpol arrest warrant issued in 2006 at the behest of the Iraqi authorities for the Raghad's extradition was shrugged off by Amman as politically-motivated an therefore devoid of legal support.

In remarks on the situation in Iraq, Sharif condemned the latest wave of bombings in Iraq, saying they were 'acts of terrorism targeting civilians' and that the Iraqi people deserved 'more support from their Arab brethren after accomplishing an important step as represented by last month's general elections.'