AEGiS-UPI: Libya orders new trial in HIV case

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2005. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Libya orders new trial in HIV case

United Press International - December 25, 2005

TRIPOLI, Libya, Dec. 25 (UPI) -- Libya's Supreme Court has ordered new trials for six condemned heathcare workers convicted of infecting children with HIV. The five Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor were convicted of infecting 426 children with HIV in Benghazi, Libya, and sentenced to death by firing squad in May 2004. The six have maintained their innocence and blamed the infections on poor hospital hygiene. During their appeal before the high court, the convicts claimed their confessions were extracted during torture and Western medical experts backed up their claim the outbreak began before they even arrived in Libya, the BBC reported Sunday. Bulgaria, the United States and the European Union have strongly objected to the convictions and sentences, and the latest break in the case appears to be part of a wider effort by Libya to improve relations with the West.
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