Prosecutors demand death penalty: Saddam, 3 others

The prosecutors for the Saddam trial, along with his cronies, are demanding the death penalty for Saddam, Saddam's half-brother Barzan al-Tikriti, former Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan and the former chief judge of Saddam's Revolutionary Court, Awad Hamed al-Bandar.

The prosecutions case closed last Monday, and the defense attorneys will provide their closing arguments July 10, 2006. The judge is granting the defense three days on which to provide their case, although they initially requested more time to prepare their case. It should last from July 10 through July 13.

It appears the prosecution wishes to release some people, Mohammad Azzam Azzawi, a former official of the ruling Baath Party with responsibility for the Dujail area, on the grounds they were only following orders. Someone should show him the Nuremberg Trials for the Nazi party.

The alleged facts of the trial will focus on this:

"Entire families were imprisoned, including old men, women and children .. They were taken to mukhabarat headquarters in Baghdad, and they suffered from physical and mental torture, including electrical shocks."

Forty-six people died from torture or the conditions of imprisonment, he said. The Revolutionary Court then sentenced 148 to death after a "show trial in which the defendants did not appear and had no chance for defense," he said. [continue reading]

Stay tuned.

Source: The Daily Star.

Category: Iraq, Human Rights and News.