SANAA, 6 December 2004 — Yemeni Parliament Speaker Abdullah Al-Ahmar yesterday pardoned the Jordanian husband of his daughter who murdered her in Amman last year, Yemeni officials said.
The officials told Arab News that the pardon was granted in response to pleas from Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh and Jordan’s King Abdallah.
Saleh announced the pardon during a meeting in Sanaa that brought together a delegation of 40 Jordanian tribal dignitaries, Al-Ahmar’s family and senior Yemeni government officials.
Jordanian Royal Adviser and former Prime Minister Abdul-Raouf Al-Rawabda headed the delegation to Sanaa seeking conciliation into the murder case.
In a speech at the meeting that was also attended by dozens of Yemeni tribal elders, Al-Rawabda asked Al-Ahmar to forgive Mamdooh Al-Shaalan, who shot dead his wife, Rabaa, in their Amman house in June 2003.
Al-Shaalan, son of one of the most prominent Jordanian tribal leaders, was arrested immediately after the unexplained murder.
