11/28/2005

A combative Saddam Hussein lashed out today over his treatment by US guards and demanded that the chief judge stand up to American “occupiers and invaders” as his trial for crimes against humanity resumed in a heavily guarded Baghdad court.

The 68-year-old former president began his monologue with a verse from the Muslim holy book the Koran which reminds believers who aspire for Heaven that God knows who actually participated in jihad.

Two of the seven other defendants also spoke out during the 2 1/2-hour session, complaining of their treatment in detention or dissatisfaction with their court-appointed counsel. The tribunal adjourned until next Monday to give the defence time to replace lawyers killed since the opening session on October 19.

The court’s tolerance of such comments drew sharp complaints from Shiite politicians who believed the Iraqi High Tribunal was bending over backwards to accommodate a defendant who should have already been convicted and executed.

“The chief judge should be changed and replaced by someone who is strict and courageous,” said Shiite legislator Ali al-Adeeb, a senior official in Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari’s party.

Saddam and his co-defendants stand accused of killing more than 140 Shiite Muslims after an assassination attempt against the former president in the Shiite town of Dujail in 1982. Convictions could bring a sentence of death by hanging.

The tribunal allowed former US Attorney General Ramsey Clark and prominent lawyers from Qatar and Jordan to join the defence team as advisers, a move aimed at convincing foreign human rights groups that the trial would meet international standards of fairness.

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