London, UK, June 20 – Two prominent leaders of Hizb ut-Tahrir who were at the forefront of struggling for the return of the Islamic Khilafah [Caliphate] in the Muslim world have been kidnapped, tortured and murdered in Iraq.

Ahmad Sadoon Al-Ubayde, a prominent leader of Hizb ut-Tahrir in Iraq , was kidnapped on the 6th of May 2006 from his workplace. His dead body, bearing signs of torture, was found in a Baghdad hospital later that day.

Adel Al-Rammahi, from Hizb ut-Tahrir's media office in Iraq , was kidnapped in similar circumstances and murdered on the night of 15th April 2006.

Imran Waheed, a media representative of Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain, said, "These two men were at the forefront of political struggle in Iraq – exposing the illegal occupation of Iraq and the regime which serves to safeguard the interests of Western governments. There can be little doubt that the Iraqi regime had a hand in their murders. Over the last few decades, dozens of Hizb ut-Tahrir members were kidnapped, tortured and murdered by Saddam Hussein. Now, they are murdered by Iraq 's new client regime."

"We pray that Allah (swt) has mercy on these brothers and raises them up with the Prophets, Siddiqqeen (truthful), Shuhadaah (martyrs) and Saliheen (righteous) and how excellent is their company. Despite these murders, Hizb ut-Tahrir will continue its work to bring back honour and dignity to Islam and Muslims under the banner of the Islamic Khilafah."

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