American authorities have formally given the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) the nod to visit former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein in prison.
"We have the green light for the visit, but we don't yet know when it will take place," ICRC president Jakob Kellenberger told the Swiss newspaper Tribune de Geneve. "There is no reason we cannot do it," he added.
Technical arrangements for the visit by aid workers to check on Saddam's treatment in prison were still being made, according to the humanitarian agency.
"There has been a formal indication from the United States. We think a visit ought to take place as soon as possible," ICRC spokesman Florian Westphal told AFP.
© 2004 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
