Tunisia president and parliament at odds over Gaddafi PM's extradition

Tunisia's president, Moncef Marzouki, has said his own government's extradition of Libya's former prime minister was illegal. Marzouki said he was not consulted over the extradition of Al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi, whom Libya has accused of crimes committed during Muammar Gaddafi's rule. Tunisia's executive, however, insisted the extradition last weekend - which had been opposed by human rights groups - was legal, claiming the president's permission was not needed. It said the decision was made after a delegation visited Tripoli, which enjoys close relations with Tunis, and found Libya's justice system was competent enough to hold a fair trial. Mahmoudi fled Libya in August after rebel forces stormed Tripoli, and has been held in Tunisia accused of illegally entering the country. For Libya, there is immense satisfaction at having such a pivotal figure in custody. Mahmoudi, 70, spent two decades rising through the ministerial ranks of Gaddafi's Libya. As the former chairman of both the high council for oil and gas and the Libyan Investment Authority, which owns £100bn in overseas assets, he can point investigators towards cash Gaddafi had moved abroad. Peeling back the layers of Gaddafi's Libya will be a delicate process, with many current government officials having served in prominent positions under the former regime. Tripoli hopes Tunisia's decision to hand over Mahmoudi will encourage other states to do likewise with other figures prominent under Gaddafi. These, including Gaddafi's sons Mohammed and Saadi, who fled to Algeria and Niger respectively, are regarded in Tripoli as posing a potential threat to the stability of the country in the runup to elections on 7 July. Mahmoudi's arrival also represents a challenge for Libya's government, which is under pressure from human rights groups over the lack of a functioning justice system. The UN and Nato have already condemned the detention by militia of the Australian international criminal court lawyer Melinda Taylor in the mountain town of Zintan. Canberra acknowledged at the weekend there may be no early release for Taylor, who is accused by Libya of trying to pass secret documents to Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, also held in Zintan, during an official meeting with him earlier this month.