The World - News from March 2, 1989

Iraq announced a conditional amnesty for political exiles and denied a report that it tortured children. The official Iraqi News Agency said the ruling Revolutionary Command Council declared a general amnesty for all exiles except for a Kurdish guerrilla leader, Jalal Talabani, and “agents of Iran.” The decree said the offer of a pardon included all other exiles and all legal measures against them would be waived provided they returned home during April. The amnesty was announced shortly after Baghdad denied a report by Amnesty International that it had tortured and killed children for political reasons. The London-based human rights group has charged that the Baghdad government sanctioned the abuse and killing of thousands of minors.