Saddam to boycott court proceedings

The Scotsman
Feb. 12, 2006

Saddam Hussein's trial is set to resume with the ex-Iraqi president and his seven co-defendants vowing to continue their boycott of the proceedings, the former ruler's lawyers said.

With an empty dock likely, the hearing will mark the latest troubled chapter in the trial of Saddam and his co-defendants over the killing of nearly 150 Shiite Muslims after the former ruler survived a 1982 assassination attempt in the town of Dujail north of Baghdad.

"As far as I know, neither the president and other defendants, nor the defence team, will attend the resumed hearings of the illegal court, which is biased in the case and can't give the defendants a fair trial," chief defence lawyer Khalil al-Dulaimi told The Associated Press in Amman, capital of neighbouring Jordan.

"We boycotted and we will not go back unless our demands are met," he said, referring to a previous call by the defence team for the replacement of the trial's new chief judge, Raouf Abdel-Rahman.

Another defence lawyer, Khamis al-Obeidi, added: "Our boycott of the trial continues. It's a show trial and our presence will give the court legitimacy. We had attended the proceedings despite our conviction that it is an illegitimate court." Al-Obeidi spoke in Baghdad.

Judge Abdel-Rahman, a Kurd, took over last month after his predecessor stepped down amid criticism over his handling of the trial, during which Saddam and his half brother and one-time intelligence chief Barzan Ibrahim repeatedly hurled abuse at witnesses and interrupted the proceedings.

The defence claims that Abdel-Rahman is unfit to try the case because he was sentenced to life in absentia in the 1970s for anti-state activity. Saddam became president in 1979, but was Iraq's most powerful man for several years before that.

In his first session in charge on January 29, Abdel-Rahman tried to restore the court's authority by ejecting one defence lawyer, prompting the rest to leave in protest. Saddam and three co-defendants were also allowed to leave or be forcibly removed, and the judge appointed replacement defence lawyers.

In the following session on February 1, only three defendants attended, while none showed up the next day.

Monday's session is expected to include testimony from former regime figures and the presentation of documents allegedly indicating the ousted ruler's knowledge of the torture and execution of Shiite Muslims from Dujail, court officials have said.