THE FAMILY of murdered aid worker Margaret Hassan have been informed that the man waiting to stand trial in connection with her murder has gone missing.

Ali Lutfi Jassar was sentenced to life imprisonment for his involvement in Hassan’s death in 2009 but won his right to a retrial.

Hassan’s sister, Deirdre Manchanda, said that her family had had previous concerns about Jassar’s whereabouts.  Their lawyer in Baghdad had expressed concern about Jassar’s  absence at all his appeal hearings.

Hassan was born in Ireland but had   lived  and worked in Iraq for over 30 years. She was married to an Iraqi and had joint Irish, British and Iraqi nationality.

Hassan was the director of CARE International’s operation in Iraq, and was abducted in October 2004 as she drove to work in western Baghdad.

She was shot several weeks later and her body has never been recovered.

The missing suspect, Jassar, was granted a retrial after he claimed that he was forced into signing a confession after being beaten and given electrical shocks during questioning.