US frees former high-value Iraqis
Foreign Desk Report

BAGHDAD—The U.S. military has released eight former Baathist detainees of high value, a military spokesman said Monday. Among them are two female biological weapons experts, Rihab Taha, the head of Iraq’s biological weapons program, also known as “Dr. Germ;” and Huda Salih Mehdi Ammash, a top weapons scientist, known as “Mrs. Anthrax,”. Both were captured a week apart in May 2003.
The detainees were released Saturday as part of an ongoing review process, said Lt. Col. Barry Johnson, the U.S. military spokesman. “We no longer had cause to hold them since they are no longer under investigation for crimes,” Johnson said in a statement. He would not release further details. At the time of the invasion in Iraq, Ammash was No. 39 on the U.S. military’s list of most wanted Iraqis. She has reportedly been very ill recently. Taha was not on the U.S. list of most wanted. The Iraqi lawyer for Taha and Ammash confirmed their release, saying that in all 25 detainees were freed, eight of whom were considered high-value. Badie Arif identified other freed detainees as the former head of national monitoring directorate in charge of dealing with weapons inspectors Hussam Mohammed Amin (No. 34); former education minister Humam Abdul Khaliq (No. 43 on the most wanted list); former atomic scientist Hazim al-Rawi; former Uday Hussein aide Aseel Tabra; scientist Thamir al-Taie; former member of Iraqi intelligence Ibrahim al-Ani; scientist Dhia Mahir al-Tikriti, former prison director Hameed al-Janabi; and former transport minister Ahmed Murtadha. Arif also is the attorney for former deputy prime minister Tariq Aziz, who still is being held. Arif said 27 high-value detainees are being held without charge and 65 high-value criminals have been detained and charged with crimes. Among them are Saddam Hussein and his seven co-defendants.
A car bomb targeting a Baghdad-area police chief exploded Monday morning outside a children’s hospital in western Baghdad, killing two civilians, and wounding the chief and seven others, emergency police said. The attack took place around 8:45 a.m., as the convoy of Col. Salam Alegh, the head of Dora police, was passing.