Al-Mahmoudi extradition needs presidential decree

Al-Mahmoudi is wanted on charges for rape and corruption Tunis – Nabil Zaghdoud/Agencies Human rights activists have said that Tunisia cannot hand over Libyan ex-PM Al-Baghdadi Al-Mahmoudi, who has been detained in Tunsisa since September 21, until the decision is made by the executive authority and a presidential order is issued.
Sources explained to ‘Arabstoday’ that “Tunisian law says that the Tunisian president should issue a decree no later than a month from the date of extradition.”
Al-Mahmoudi is a specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, and held the position Secretary of the General People's Committee, during the Gaddafi regime.
The appeals court decided on Tuesday to hand over Al-Mahmoudi to Libyan judicial authorities  during a closed session that lasted for more than five hours. It was attended by Al-Mahmoudi and his lawyers, the Attorney General  representative , and a lawyer for the Libyan State.
Al-Mahmoudi’s Libyan lawyers who expressed their concern forAl-Mahmoudi's safety if he goes back to Libya has offered to Tunisia a signed convention to ensure he will be treated well and guaranteed a fair trial.
A number of Tunisian lawyers said: “Mohammed Al-Alai, the Libyan Justice Minister, who is considered as the General Attorney, has offered a written commitment to ensure the fair treatment Al-Mahmoudi will get in Libya to the Tunisian judicial authority.”
They explained: “The commitment must include five points regarding the good treatment offered to Al-Mahmoudi, and keep him in the prison that belongs to the Ministry of Justice, not to hand him over to any other country, to enable lawyers and international human right organisations to defend him, tp review the circumstances of his arrest, and release him in the case of lack of evidence for the charges against him.”
However, a Tunisian appeals court on Wednesday rejected a request to free Al-Mahmoudi, a day after giving the nod to his extradition.
The Tunis appeals court "rejected the request we had made for his release," Al-Mahmoudi's lawyer Mabrook Kurshid said, complaining that the defence had been given no explanation.
The court on Tuesday approved a request by Libya's new authorities for Al-Mahmoudi to be extradited, despite concerns expressed by rights groups and Al-Mahmoudi himself over his safety.
Kurshid said last week that his client fears for his life as the sole holder of Libyan state secrets since ousted tyrant Muammar Gaddafi's death on October 20.
Al-Mahmoudi, 70, was prime minister until the final days of the Gaddafi regime. He was arrested on September 21 on Tunisia's southwestern border with Algeria and jailed for illegal entry.
Kurshid condemned  in a phone call with ‘Arabstoday’ the decision made by the Tunisian judiciary to hand over Al-Mahmoudi to the Libyan authority, considering this step as a “breach of the UN convention against torture” to which Tunisia is a signatory.
He stressed, " If Mahmoudi is subjected to torture or the death penalty in Libya, the Tunisian judiciary will be a partner in this."
Amnesty International has sent a letter to the Tunisian Minister of Justice urging him not to hand the former Prime Minister over to Libya, where it is said he will face exposure to "serious violations of human rights."
Amnesty believed that "if he returns to Libya, he is at real risk, especially in the current situation, with all the human rights violations which have been witnessed by people in the same position in Libya.”
Mabrook has also expressed his worries that "the commitment of the Tunisian authorities is greater than the political commitment to human rights and justice courts".
Dozens of Libyan citizens gathered in front of the court Tuesday morning, demanding the handover of  Al-Mahmoudi to the Libyan authorities, according to the 1961 Convention signed  between Tunisia and Libya.
He faces charges of financial corruption and "incitement to rape women” during the Libyan revolution which broke out in February 17.