Calgary father accused of hiding kidnapped daughter in Iraq released on bail

The Calgary father accused of kidnapping his daughter and hiding her with family in Iraq has been released on bail.

Ali Al Aazawi, 38, is charged with international kidnapping and parental abduction. 

The submissions made during the bail hearing by prosecutor Stephen Johnston and defence lawyer Balfour Der are protected by a publication ban.

The ban includes provincial court Judge Josh Hawkes's reasons for releasing Al Aazawi.

Throughout civil court proceedings, several Calgary judges attempted to place conditions on Al Aazawi in an effort to facilitate the child's return to Canada, which have been unsuccessful.

• Iraq riots hamper return of Calgary girl in parental kidnapping case

• Calgary father facing new international kidnapping charge while allegations of domestic violence surface

In June 2018, Al Aazawi took his 12-year-old daughter, Zahraa, to Egypt and then to Iraq, where he left her with family.

He and the child's mother, Zanaib Mahdi, had an agreement that following a three-month trip overseas, Zahraa was to be returned to her mother in September.

It has been a year-and-a-half since Mahdi has seen her daughter. 

In 2012, court documents show Mahdi sought an emergency protection order, alleging her husband physically and psychologically abused her. 

Mahdi told police at the time that Al Aazawi had broken her nose and finger, burned her shoulder and had once given her a black eye.

Al Aazawi, 38, was also charged with civil contempt but that was dismissed in October by Court of Queen's Bench Justice David Labrenz, who found the father complied, to the best of his ability, with an order detailing steps to be taken to get the girl back to Canada.

So far, Al Aazawi has disclosed the location of one of his passports and his daughter's passport. He has also told authorities his daughter is living with his wife and his sister in Baghdad and has signed a travel consent document.