Early Life
Tariq
al-Hashimi was born in 1942 in Baghdad, Iraq, into the Mashhadan tribe. From
1959 until 1962, he studied at a military academy. He earned a bachelor's
degree in economics from Al-Mustansiriya University in 1969, and a master's in
1978. At the age of 33, he left the military and became active in the Iraqi
Islamic Party, serving on its planning committee.
Political Views
Hashimi's
party represented the largest Sunni block in parliament after the 2005
election. Hashimi opposes federalism, wants oil revenues distributed based on
population, de-Baathification reversed and more Sunnis in the new military and
police.
Hashimi
stepped down as secretary general of the IIP in May 2009, and Dr. Osama al
Tikriti was elected to fill the position. Hashimi stated that he stepped down
because he wanted to focus on his responsibilities as vice president, and not
for political reasons.
USA
Today reported in December 2006 that Hashimi was involved in forming a
multi-sectarian alliance to replace the government of Prime Minister Nouri
al-Maliki, with the encouragement of U.S. President George W. Bush, Muqtada
al-Sadr.
Arrest Warrant
On
May 8th 2012 the interpol had issued an arrest warrant on him. On December 19,
2011, it was announced that Iraq's Judicial Council had issued an arrest
warrant for al-Hashimi, accusing him of orchestrating bombing attacks. He has
been accused of running a hit squad and killing Shiite government officials. He
subsequently sought protection in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. President of
Kurdistan Massoud Barzani declared in March 2012 that the Kurdistan Regional
Government would not hand over al-Hashimi to Iraqi authorities because Kurdish
ethics prevented them from doing so. Al-Hashimi has denied all charges and
claimed constitutional immunity from the prosecution.
On
April 1, 2012, al-Hashimi was allowed by the authorities in Kurdistan to travel
to Qatar to meet with the Emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, on what the
Qatari administration described as an official diplomatic visit. Iraqi Deputy
Prime Minister Hussain al-Shahristani denounced the visit as unacceptable on
Qatar's part and called for al-Hashimi to be immediately handed over.The
arrest warrant came just one day after the final U.S. troop withdrawal of
remaining forces from Iraq. The dispute between the Sunni Muslim al-Hashimi
with the primarily Shia administration of Prime Minister Maliki has generated
concern over the stability of the young Iraqi government amid the ongoing
sectarian conflic.