The Hindu : Front Page : Saddam in Iraq's legal custody

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Thursday, Jul 01, 2004

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Saddam in Iraq's legal custody

By Atul Aneja

MANAMA, JUNE 30. Six months after his capture by the United States troops, Iraq's Interim Government today took the former President, Saddam Hussein, into "legal custody," setting in motion a lengthy judicial process that might take several months to conclude.

Mr. Hussein, who will appear before an Iraqi tribunal on Thursday, has not been physically handed over to the new Government, and is being kept under a U.S. guard.

Apart from Mr. Hussein, the other 11 detainees who will face charges include Ali Hassan al-Majid — also known as Chemical Ali, the former Deputy Prime Minister, Tariq Aziz, the former Deputy President, Taha Yasin Ramadan, and two of the former President's half brothers.

Salim Chalabi, who heads the tribunal, met Mr. Hussein in a high-security jail today and explained to him his rights, apart from familiarising him with the proceedings slated for Thursday.

"He was in good health, he was seeing a doctor this morning," AFP quoted Mr. Chalabi as saying.

Mr. Hussein's appearance at the tribunal, which is located in a courthouse with a prominent clock tower inside Baghdad's high-security Green Zone, is likely to be televised. These pictures would be the first bit of video available since Mr. Hussein's capture on December 13 last year.

After their appearance, the detainees will be given the status of Iraqi criminal suspects, which will empower them to have attorneys or appointed counsel. Mr. Chalabi said that Mr. Hussein's trial and of other senior figures was unlikely to begin before 2005. Some of the suspects might be indicted in autumn, but "senior ones will not be indicted for some time," he was quoted as saying. "Then after that ... the trials would start maybe in a few months further down the line."

The trial is expected to be lengthy as extensive documentation is required, mass graves have to be exhumed and investigators have to interview scores of witnesses. Mr. Hussein and other top detainees are likely to be charged with genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, Mr. Chalabi said in an interview on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the new Iraqi Government indicated that it was all set to restore the death penalty. The Interim President, Ghazi Al-Yawar, told the Arabic daily Ashraq al-Awsat in an interview today that "we held a meeting shortly after the transfer of power, during which we took some decisions including re-establishing the death penalty."

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