Jordanian spared the noose in Iraq

The Jordanian Foreign Minister says Iraq has agreed to cancel a death sentence due to be imposed on a Jordanian citizen convicted of smuggling.

The minister, Fayez al Tarawnah, said the Iraqi authorities had decided not to carry out the sentence, following a plea by Jordan.

Earlier this month, five Jordanians were executed in Iraq, prompting a diplomatic crisis.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service