DEFIANT: The former Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, yells at the court on Sunday as the hand of a bailiff attempts to restrain him. The High Tribunal found the Iraqi leader guilty of crimes against humanity and sentenced him to death by hanging. &# 151; Photo: AP

DUBAI : Deposed Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and two of his co-defendants on Sunday were sentenced to death by a tribunal for their role in the killing of 148 people.

Immediately after the sentence, violence broke out in Baghdad's Sunni-dominated Azamiya district. Defying curfew, thousands of Mr. Hussein's supporters took to the streets in his hometown Tikrit.

Judge Rauf Abdel Rahman ordered Mr. Hussein to stand as he read out the verdict. Mr. Hussein refused to do so and court attendants moved him from his seat.

As the judge began reading the sentence, Mr. Hussein shouted: "Allahu Akbar" and "Long live Iraq! Long live the Iraqi people! Down with the traitors!"

He then denounced the court and the American occupation of Iraq.

Mr. Hussein and his seven co-defendants faced trial over the killing of 148 people from the mainly Shia village of Dujail. The deaths followed an assassination attempt on Mr. Hussein in 1982.

The judge also sentenced to death Barzan Al Tikriti, Mr. Hussein's military intelligence chief, and Awad Hamad Al Bandar, a former chief judge. Taha Yassin Ramadan, vice-president in the deposed government, was awarded life imprisonment.

Three former Baath party officials were sentenced to 15 years, while one of the co-accused was acquitted.

A nine-member appeals panel will now automatically review the death sentences and other verdicts.

No timeframe has been set to conclude the appeal process but executions will have to take place within 30 days in case the panel upholds the death sentences.

During the trial, three defence lawyers were mysteriously killed, prompting a boycott of the trial by their colleagues and a hunger strike by Mr. Hussein himself. One of the chief judges was inexplicably replaced in the middle of the trial.

Trial flawed: analysts

Analysts point out that the trial was flawed on several counts.

The Americans, who had occupied Iraq in March 2003, refused to set up an international tribunal to try Mr. Hussein. The United States preferred an Iraqi court, whose impartiality was questionable.

Sunni political leader Salih-Al Mutlaq told Al Arabiya television station that the Iraqi Government would now be responsible for the "deaths of hundreds, thousands or even hundreds of thousands."

However, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, whose Al Dawa party had claimed responsibility for the 1982 assassination attempt, hailed the conviction. Celebrations were reported from the Shia strongholds of Sadr city near Baghdad, Dujail and Najaf.

West Asia reaction

The verdict evoked a mixed response in West Asia.

Militant group Hamas has expressed support for Mr. Hussein. While sections of Egyptian intelligentsia questioned the fairness of the trial, the verdict was welcomed in Iran and Kuwait.

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