Mullah Krekar, arguably Norway’s least popular refugee, likely won’t be sent out of the country any time soon. Documents made available by WikiLeaks indicate the government is not actively seeking a way to deport him after all.
Government officials have claimed for years, also as late as this summer, that they’re doing all they can to deport Krekar, who once led the guerilla group Ansar al-Islam and has landed on a list of terror suspects. While WikiLeaks documents show that US officials have tried to get him sent to Jordan or even Australia, Norway has tried to send him back to Iraq, where he came from in 1991.
One document reported by newspaper Aftenposten this week, however, quoted a Foreign Ministry staffer as telling a US diplomat that Norway was not actively seeking a guarantee that Krekar would get humane treatment in Iraq. Norway can only send Krekar back to Iraq if they obtain a guarantee that he wouldn’t be executed.
Conservatives leader Erna Solberg, the opposition politician who herself has been a target of Krekar’s threats, accused the government of a double-play regarding Krekar, suspecting they’re not really working hard to extract a deal from Iraqi officials.
“I think we’re being incredibly passive,” Solberg told Aftenposten. “The government regardless should try to get an agreement in place.” She noted that any agreement would have to be approved by the Norwegian courts.
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