Saddam's court war continues

Judge cuts him off as he urges Iraqis to fight the U.S., not each other

BY MOHAMAD BAZZI | MIDDLE EAST CORRESPONDENT

March 16, 2006

BEIRUT, Lebanon - In the 24 years that he ruled Iraq, unchallenged and ever audacious, no one dared to prevent Saddam Hussein from finishing a speech.

But yesterday, when Hussein tried to deliver a speech from his prisoners' dock, he was unceremoniously cut off. The dictator - who once saw himself as the last guardian of Arab nationalism and successor to a long line of Muslim conquerors - was silenced by a judge.

Instead of addressing his court case, Hussein had launched into a political appeal urging Iraqis to end sectarian violence and fight U.S. troops instead. He peppered his speech with references to the "great Iraqi people," as he used to do when he was president.

"Let the people unite and resist the invaders and their supporters," he said in a Baghdad courtroom. "Do not fight among yourselves."

The comments earned him a rebuke from chief judge Raouf Abdel-Rahman, who said he would not allow a political lecture.

"I am the head of state," Hussein retorted.

"You used to be the head of state," the judge replied. "Now you are a defendant in a court."

After Hussein continued reading his prepared speech, he got into a shouting match with the judge. Minutes later, Abdel-Rahman cut the delayed video feed from the court and ordered journalists out. "The court has decided to turn this into a secret and closed session," the judge said.

Hussein and seven officials of his ousted regime are on trial for the summary executions of 148 Shia Muslims - and the arrest and torture of hundreds of others - in the village of Dujail after a 1982 assassination attempt on the Iraqi dictator. All eight face sentences of hanging.

While Hussein has been allowed to question witnesses and make extensive statements since the trial began on Oct. 19, yesterday marked the first day of his formal testimony. During the closed session, he was allowed to finish reading his speech, according to his lawyers.

When the judge reopened the courtroom to reporters about 90 minutes later, Hussein was sitting alone in the defendants' pen. As prosecutors tried to question him, he refused to answer. Instead, he demanded copies of statements he made to investigators before the trial. The judge ordered that Hussein be provided with copies and adjourned the trial until April 5.

The trial has been marred by delays, the assassination of two defense lawyers, the resignation of its original chief judge and courtroom outbursts by Hussein and his co-defendants.

On March 1, Hussein stood up and declared he had ordered that the 148 Shias be put on trial before Iraq's Revolutionary Court, which quickly sentenced them all to death. Hussein insisted he was acting within his right as Iraq's president because those executed were involved in the assassination attempt on him.

At yesterday's session, Hussein did not address the Dujail case at all. Instead, he tried to portray himself as a statesman urging Iraqis to cast aside their sectarian tensions.

"Oh Iraqis, in your resistance to the invasion by the Americans and Zionists and their allies, you were great," Hussein said. "You were great in my eyes and you remain so." He urged Iraqis to end the Shia-Sunni violence that has gripped the country since last month's bombing of a major Shia shrine in Samarra. "Those who destroyed the shrine are shameful criminals," he said.

If sectarian warfare continues, he warned, "You will live in darkness and rivers of blood for no reason."

After several attempts to get Hussein to address the Dujail case, the exasperated judge yelled at him: "Respect yourself!"

"You respect yourself!" Hussein shouted back.

"You are a defendant in a major criminal case, involving the killing of innocents. You have to respond to this charge," the judge said.

"What about those who are dying in Baghdad? Are they not innocents?" Hussein replied. "I am addressing the Iraqi people." And the ousted dictator kept reading his speech.