Tripoli: Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki has slammed his country’s decision to extradite Libya`s former prime minister al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi as ‘illegal’.
On Sunday, Mahmoudi was extradited to Libya from Tunisia, where he had fled during the uprising against slain dictator Muammar Gaddafi last year.
Marzouki`s office said in a statement that the decision to extradite Mahmoudi was taken without consultation and without his agreement, The BBC reports.
He insisted that the decision affected foreign policy, which is ‘within the purview of the president of the republic’.
“The extradition threatens the image of Tunisia in the world, making it appear like a state which is not committed to... respecting the elements of a fair trial," the statement added.
Mahmoudi is the first senior Libyan official to be returned for trial.
He had served as prime minister from March 2006, but fled Libya when Gaddafi`s forces lost control of Tripoli and was arrested in Tunisia in September for illegal entry.
ANI
