Safin Hamed/AFP/Getty Images - Iraqi Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi speaks during a press conference in the Kurdish regional capital Irbil on Dec. 20, where he denied terror charges against him and vowed to defend himself as rival leaders called for urgent talks to resolve a worsening crisis.
Asked about the responses to Biden, the official said Maliki and Nujaifi “were certainly responsive in the moment. The issue is really what actions follow from that.”
Maliki also threatened Wednesday to release files containing allegedly damning evidence about other government officials. “The others, they should at least stop their destruction and killing,” he said. “Otherwise, all the files will go out and be put before the judiciary.”
With regard to the vice president, Maliki insisted that the charges against him were legitimate and that his government “will provide a fair trial.”
“It is a criminal case,” he said. “It is a matter of blood and souls. I will not allow — the families of the martyrs will not allow — compromise on this case.”
Hashimi has called the charges against him baseless, saying they were trumped up by Maliki. He fled to Kurdistan several days ago and has said that he is willing to stand trial there, but not in Shiite-majority Baghdad.
“The judiciary today in Baghdad is not fair,” he said in an interview Wednesday on al-Hurra TV. “It is politicized. There is no transparency. It has been put in the pocket of the government.”
Hashimi told the network that the prime minister has become impossible for other politicians to work with.
“Al-Maliki pushed things in the direction of no return,” he said. “I don’t think, today, there is enough space for a dialogue.”
Hashimi said he is seeking to have a lawsuit filed against Maliki over the files that the prime minister has said he may turn over to investigators.
“He’s waiting for the right moment to blackmail the politicians,” Hashimi said. “Why is he covering up those crimes? Why does he not present them? Why do these cases remain up to his personal choice?”
Iraq’s Interior Ministry, which is controlled by Maliki, announced the arrest warrant for Hashimi on Monday, the day after the last U.S. troops left Iraq. Maliki said at the news conference that Hashimi was operating outside the law and appeared to think that his position allowed him to do so.
“There is a mechanism all over the world for people who are wanted by the judiciary,” Maliki said. “That’s why we are demanding the brothers in the regional government of Kurdistan bear their responsibility.”
DeYoung reported from Washington. Special correspondent Asaad Majeed contributed to this report.
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