Tunisia plans to extradite former Libyan prime minister Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi to Libya "in the coming weeks," the country's Justice Ministry said Tuesday, dpa reported.
Justice Ministry spokesman Mondher Ben Dhiyaf told dpa that the decision to proceed with the extradition was taken after Libyan Prime Minister Abdel Rahim al-Keib gave assurances that al-Mahmoudi would not be mistreated and would be given a fair trial.
Al-Keib gave the commitment during a visit to Tunisia last week, the spokesman said.
Al-Mahmoudi was late dictator Moamer Gaddafi's prime minister from 2006 until Gaddafi's overthrow in August last year.
He would be the first senior former regime official to be handed over to Libya's new authorities by a foreign government.
He has been in detention in Tunisia since September, when he was arrested on charges of illegally entering the country while fleeing Libya.
He was freed shortly afterwards only to be rearrested after Libya issued a warrant for his arrest on charges of corruption.
In November, a court in Tunis approved the request for his extradition, but President Moncef Marzouki delayed signing the order, saying he wanted to first receive assurances about al-Mahmoudi's safety in Libya.
Amnesty international had appealed to Tunisia not to extradite him, saying there was a risk he could be tortured or even summarily executed.
Gaddafi was shot dead directly after his capture in circumstances that remain unclear.
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