# Iraq Pres. Maliki demands Kurdish-region officials hand over fugitive Kurdish VP **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [December 21, 2011, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-pres-maliki-demands-kurdish-region-officials-hand-over-fugitive-kurdish-vp/606966 "2011-12-21T17:38:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-pres-maliki-demands-kurdish-region-officials-hand-over-fugitive-kurdish-vp/606966/1 "2011-12-21T17:38:39Z")
Iraq might be facing its first big post-Occupation constitutional test. [Maliki wants Tariq al-Hashimi,](http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2011/12/2011122195948409330.html) who is accused of running a death squad, and who is now holing up in Iraqi Kurdistan. IIRC the inclusion of Kurds in top government was a pretty important element of the post-Invasion constitutional settlement. This might test it. I don’t think Iraqi Kurdistan is going to declare independence for al-Hashimi’s sake, but if they won’t hand him over, what does Maliki do? ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-pres-maliki-demands-kurdish-region-officials-hand-over-fugitive-kurdish-vp/606966/2 "2011-12-21T18:29:31Z")
I think the fact that a former VP has a warrant out for running a death squad is more of a bad sign then whether or not the Kurds will hand him over. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-pres-maliki-demands-kurdish-region-officials-hand-over-fugitive-kurdish-vp/606966/3 "2011-12-21T18:37:43Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > I think the fact that a former VP has a warrant out for running a death squad is more of a bad sign then whether or not the Kurds will hand him over. How well backed up is that allegation, though? I’m sure everyone who languished in a Soviet gulag had a warrant on them from the government, doesn’t mean they did it. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-pres-maliki-demands-kurdish-region-officials-hand-over-fugitive-kurdish-vp/606966/4 "2011-12-21T18:37:54Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > I think the fact that a former VP has a warrant out for running a death squad is more of a bad sign then whether or not the Kurds will hand him over. Don’t point fingers, we had Aaron Burr once . . . ---
**Author:** ![Simplicio](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c37758/32.png) [@Simplicio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Simplicio)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-pres-maliki-demands-kurdish-region-officials-hand-over-fugitive-kurdish-vp/606966/5 "2011-12-21T18:48:41Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > How well backed up is that allegation, though? I’m sure everyone who languished in a Soviet gulag had a warrant on them from the government, doesn’t mean they did it. Well, whether the VP was really running a death squad or he’s simply being accused of doing so so that his political advesarys can lock him up Soviet Gulag style, either way its not a great sign for Iraqs political situation. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-pres-maliki-demands-kurdish-region-officials-hand-over-fugitive-kurdish-vp/606966/6 "2011-12-21T19:01:28Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > Well, whether the VP was really running a death squad or he’s simply being accused of doing so so that his political advesarys can lock him up Soviet Gulag style, either way its not a great sign for Iraqs political situation. Oh, yes, something is most definitely not right. I just thought the thread should keep in mind that we don’t know exactly what. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2011, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-pres-maliki-demands-kurdish-region-officials-hand-over-fugitive-kurdish-vp/606966/7 "2011-12-21T20:25:42Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Don’t point fingers, we had Aaron Burr once . . . Aaron Burr fought a duel and won. He was once accused of trying to steal land from Mexico. I…don’t think either of those comes near to running death squads. Now, if you want to talk about Andrew Jackson and the Trail of Tears then you might be getting closer (except no one - but the Indians - thought he was doing anything bad at the time.) ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 22, 2011, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-pres-maliki-demands-kurdish-region-officials-hand-over-fugitive-kurdish-vp/606966/8 "2011-12-22T16:06:48Z")
Meanwhile, in another post-Occupation test for the government, [63 killed by coordinated bomb-blasts around Baghdad.](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-16297707) Probably set by Al-Qaeda-in-Iraq. ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [December 23, 2011, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-pres-maliki-demands-kurdish-region-officials-hand-over-fugitive-kurdish-vp/606966/9 "2011-12-23T22:36:54Z")
I believe Al-Hashimi is actually a [Sunni Arab](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tariq_Al-Hashimi#Early_life), not a Kurd. He’s holed up in the Kurdish region because that region is not directly controlled by the central government (which is dominated by the Shi’ite Arabs, who are the majority of the population of the entire country). ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 24, 2011, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/iraq-pres-maliki-demands-kurdish-region-officials-hand-over-fugitive-kurdish-vp/606966/10 "2011-12-24T15:40:47Z")
> [@MEBuckner](#): > > I believe Al-Hashimi is actually a [Sunni Arab](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tariq_Al-Hashimi#Early_life), not a Kurd. He’s holed up in the Kurdish region because that region is not directly controlled by the central government (which is dominated by the Shi’ite Arabs, who are the majority of the population of the entire country). You’re right, I misread that . . . The Kurdish representative in the government is the President (ceremonial head-of-state), Jalal Talabani.