IRAQ: Saddam Hussein faces possible death penalty
BBSNews 2006-08-21 - BAGHDAD, 21 August, 2006 (IRIN) - The ousted Iraqi leader, Saddam Hussein, went on trial on Monday for a second time on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. According to the prosecution, all the crimes were committed in the wake of Hussein's 1987-88 alleged crackdown against ethnic Kurds in northern Iraq.
The case against Hussein and six co-defendants is centred on the deaths of some 180,000 Kurds during this offensive, dubbed Operation Anfal (Arabic for 'spoils of war') by the Iraqi army.
The operation was allegedly aimed at crushing Kurdish militias and clearing all Kurds from the northern region along the border with Iran. Hussein had accused the Kurds of helping Iran in its war with Iraq [September 1980 to August 1988]. Many Kurdish villages were razed to the ground and countless young men disappeared, according to the prosecution.
"This case is completely different from the previous one in which there was just one charge: crimes against humanity," said Tarik Harb, a Baghdad-based legal expert.
"Today [in this trial], there are three charges [against Hussein and his co-defendants]: genocide, which is defined as crimes against a group of people for their ethnic, religious or nationality backgrounds; crimes against humanity, which are the systematic targeting of civilians; and war crimes, which include all acts that contravene the Geneva Conventions," Harb said.
When asked to enter a plea on the three charges, Hussein, who faces a possible death penalty, replied by saying, "That would require volumes of books." The judge then ordered a plea of not-guilty to be recorded on his behalf.
Other defendants include Ali Hassan al-Majid, Hussein's cousin, who allegedly led Operation Anfal as secretary of the then ruling Ba'ath Party's northern bureau. His role earned him the nickname 'Chemical Ali' because of the use of poisonous gas in the campaign.
Also on trial is Sabir al-Douri, a former director of military intelligence; Sultan Hashim Ahmad al-Tai, who was head of the Iraqi army's 1st Corps, which was responsible for the Anfal military operation; and Taher Tawfiq al-Ani, then the Mosul governor.
The two other defendants are Hussein Rashid Mohammed, who was deputy director of operations for the Iraqi military, and Farhan Mutlaq Saleh, then head of military intelligence's eastern regional office.
The trial began as Hussein and six other co-defendants await verdicts, due on 16 October, from an earlier trial for their alleged involvement in the killings of more than 148 Shi'ite Muslims from Dujail, a small village 60km north of Baghdad. This was revenge for an alleged assassination attempt on Hussein in the town in 1982.
This report has been brought to you by IRIN, a UN humanitarian news and information service, but may not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its agencies.
Comments (0)