Former Libyan PM to be extradited

A decision by a Tunisian appeals court to extradite Libya's former prime minister back to his home country is a political move, his lawyer claimed. A Tunisia court of appeals honored a request from Libya's transitional government to extradite former Prime Minister Al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi. He would become the first member of the former regime to face a free Libya's justice system since the war began in March. Mahmoudi escaped to Tunisia but was captured in September and later sentenced to six months in prison for entering the country illegally. His defense lawyer, Mabrouk Korchid, was quoted by the Tripoli Post as saying the Tunisian decision was a political move. "It's an unfair decision, a political decision," he said. The report from Tripoli notes that with Moammar Gadhafi dead and his son Saif al-Islam still on the loose, Mahmoudi is the last remaining official with knowledge of the former regime's inner workings. He is not, however, among those wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes committed in Libya since an uprising against Gadhafi began in February. Korchid said his client is accused of financial crimes and inciting rape during the last days of Gadhafi's regime. Tunisia, he added, would have blood on its hands if any harm came to the former prime minister.