London mayor fuming over Iraqi cigar case probe

LONDON (Reuters) - London's flamboyant mayor Boris Johnson is fuming after police took possession of a cigar case he removed from the looted home of former Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz shortly after the U.S.-led invasion in 2003.

Johnson, a member of the opposition Conservatives and a journalist, traveled to Baghdad in 2003 and wrote about his experiences in the Spectator magazine.

He handed the case to the city's Metropolitan Police on Monday, and wrote a letter in Tuesday's Telegraph complaining about the pettiness of a case which he blamed on the ruling Labor Party.

"We can confirm that the item in question has today been taken into police custody," the police said in a statement on Monday. "The item, a cigar case, will remain with the police while further enquiries, by the country of origin, are made."

The police will consider whether the case is of "archaeological, historical, cultural, rare scientific or religious importance" and whether it was illegally removed from Iraq.

Johnson said the investigation was opened after political rivals raised the issue with police, and accused the Labor Party of being "petty" and "time-wastingly idiotic".

He added: "I am accused by my political opponents of removing a cultural artifact from Iraq.

"As it happens, I also have in my possession a letter from the lawyers of Tariq Aziz, informing me that Mr. Aziz wishes me to regard the cigar case as a gift."

Iraq has lost thousands of priceless treasures since the 2003 invasion, many looted from museums and ancient archaeological sites, and officials have proposed an international ban on trading antiquities from the country.

The police said they were not investigating Johnson himself, and denied they were over-reacting.

"The MPS (Metropolitan Police Service) treats the theft of and cultural dealing of property from abroad very seriously.

"The steps we are taking are proportionate with a view to repatriating an item which could be of cultural or historical significance to the Iraqi's."

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White; Editing by Matthew Jones)

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