123,000 detainees released under amnesty law – source

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: The general pardon law covered more than 123,000 people detained in Iraqi jails since it was first applied in late February 2008, an official spokesman for the higher judicial council said on Wednesday. “A total 123,049 detainees in the Iraqi jails were released by virtue of the pardon law, in effect as of February 27, while those not covered are 29,733,” chief justice Abdelsattar al-Bayraqdar told IraqiNews.com. The Iraqi Parliament had endorsed on February 13 a law granting amnesty to Iraqis and others residing in Iraq after it was amended by Parliament to include as large a number of detainees as possible, according to Iraqi government officials. The law, however, did not include people convicted of genocide or mass killing, nor administrative and financial corruption and terrorism cases. SH (P) 1