The U.S. military announced Saturday that former Iraqi deputy prime minister Tareq Aziz had been returned to detention after doctors found no serious health problems following a fainting episode at Camp Cropper, near Baghdad.
Aziz, 71, collapsed while walking on 17 July and was transferred to a U.S. base in Balad for a CT scan and additional tests. Military physicians determined his condition was normal for his age, and he was back at the detention facility by 19 July.
His son Ziad, speaking by phone from Amman, said his father sounded weak and described the episode as alarming, noting that doctors had reviewed a 2002 cerebral hemorrhage in his medical history before ordering the transfer.
Aziz, who also served as foreign minister under Saddam Hussein, surrendered to U.S. forces in May 2003. He is held on suspicion of crimes against humanity and reportedly faces potential charges related to mass killings in 1979 and 1991, though his lawyers say he has never been formally charged. He denies involvement in any crimes.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in July 2007, in its own words.