The Iraqi government released Gopal Sharma Amgaain of Bharatpur Municipality-2, Chitwan and Rajesh Lama of Phakhel VDC Makawanpur following request to the Iraqi prime minister by outgoing prime minister Baburam Bhattarai. [break]
The two youths landed in Kathmandu on Monday night via Fly Dubai Airlines.
Embassy of Nepal in Pakistan, which is concurrently accreditated to Iraq, had coordinated the diplomatic efforts to secure the duo´s release. “After a series of diplomatic efforts, we have been able to secure release of the two youths,” Nepalese ambassador based in Pakistan Bharat Raj Paudyal said on the phone from Islamabad.
The youths who did not have visas had been taken to Kuwait with a false promise of lucrative jobs. But, from Kuwait they were taken to Basra, Iraq, where they were arrested by the police within one and a half months of landing.
An Iraqi court had subsequently slapped five-year jail terms on them for entering the country without visas. Follwing the decision of the Iraq government to give them amnesty, the two were released from jail three and half year before their actual jail terms.
In January, the Embassy of Nepal in Islamabad had forwarded a letter undersigned by outgoing Prime Minister Dr Bhattarai to the Iraqi prime minister to grant the duo amnesty.
Ambassador Poudyal also said that it has come to the embassy´s notice that three other Nepali youths are also languishing in Iraqi prisons on the charge of murdering a compatriot. “We have initiated diplomatic efforts to secure their release as well. Iraqi authorities are currently studying on our request for amnesty to them,” said Paudyal.
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