Saddam Hussein Sentenced To Death

In the trial of Saddam Hussein and other Iraqi officials for their roles in a brutal crackdown nearly 25 years ago in Dujail, Saddam Hussein has received the death penatly by hanging. One other official, Al-Bandar, has also received the same sentence. One man was acquitted of all charges, and 3 others received 15 year sentences. Mohammed Azzawi Ali, a former Dujail Baath Party official, was exonerated because, the court said, there was insufficient evidence against him.



Baghdad has been in lockdown in anticipation of violence over the verdicts. The defendants will receive an automatic appeal.

Saddam faces additional trials for other crimes against humanity. But this is the first major test of the judicial system under the fledgling Iraqi government.

[edit on 5-11-2006 by jsobecky]

Great news !

BBC radio has just announced that Iraqi civillians are breaking curfew to celebrate the announcement , and pictures and efigies of Saddam are being burned in the streets

I guess the Iraqi public does not want Saddam back , despite the claims to that effect made frequently on ATS.com

I wonder if the hanging will be televised.I think it would make a great pay-per view event!

As I stated, they receive an automatic appeal. But, within 30 days of the appeals judge's ruling, sentence must be carried out, according to Iraqi law.

Le6ts see the first trial took over a year with all the delays, so let us assume the 2nd trial takes the same. That means he has at least a year to live if not longer which gives the insurgents more time to kill more of his defense team, not a good thing. Even then he might go through the whole thing only to commit suicide just so he can be seen as a Myrta (sp) of sorts.

Suicide is a very real possibility. Saddam wanted to be shot instead of hanged but the Iraqi law is clear as to the method.

Ramsey Clark, a former US Atty. General, was thrown out of the courtroom shortly befor the sentences were read for "insulting the court and the Iraqi people. "

It will be interesting to see what will happen when Saddam is six feet under. I think they should drive a stake throught his heart, just for good measure.

I agree some others that his execution should be taped and made available free of charge to the public.

Too ghoulish for me, Grady. We get enough of that from Al Jezerah, and the terrorists, IMHO. As I mentioned on another thread, isn't Karma a wonderful thing? The only concern I have is the possibility of Saddam becoming something he wants to be, a martyr. Spitting in the Wests face from beyond the grave, if you will.

Howabout instead of hanging him, the sentence him to Elba, or something similar. It worked with Napoleon, why not this two-bit imitation Napoleon?

Does anyone know or has anyone heard when the appeal will take place? I am kind of wondering if the 2nd trial has to end first assuming that the lawyers will be the same. That being the case this process could go on for longer then I first thought making it more like two or three years before he is dead assuming the appeal ends in the same conclusion/verdict of guilty that is.

why try him again, if he is already a "dead man"???

I was wondering what the people in Iraq think, and found an interesting article by a couple of Baghdad editors. The article was dripping with excitement, and what the verdict represents for the regions future.

I was overwhelmed with joy and relief
This is a day not only for Iraqis but a historic day for the whole region; today new basis for dealing between rulers and peoples are found.

No one is above the law anymore.

I was particularly pleased by the way Judge Raouf Rasheed handled the session; he was reading the court’s decision and at the same time chastising members of the current government for their misbehavior and threatened to throw them in custody regardless of their ranks!

Later in the article the author praises everyone involved including the coalition, expressing the certainty of moving the county forward.

Right now volleys of bullets ring not far from where I sit, some are fired to express joy while others are fired in a desperate expression of denial but I have no doubt who is going to prevail. Although the road is long but we are walking forward and will not look back.

I salute the honorable special tribunal that challenged threats and risks and insisted on keeping up the work until the end, and today it brought back the pride of the land that wrote the world’s first laws.

I salute the witnesses who risked their lives to reveal the truth and expose the crimes of the dictator.

I salute the brave men and women of the coalition who came to this land and made this day possible.

Perhaps to those living in countries where due process is the normal course of life, this trial may have seemed a sham, or to have a preset verdict, but for the some of the Iraqi people, the outcome did not seem so concrete.

They were not sure that Saddam would be found guilty, or they worried that he may somehow come back to power. Now that the verdict has been handed down it seems to represent a turning point in their minds. Reassuring them that for the first time in that region those in power can be held directly responsible for their actions, even imposing the death penalty.

It also sends a message to the the present Iraqi government, and the entire region. You could wind up with a rope around your neck. A rope put there by your own people, if you don't play nice with them. That's a good thing isn't it?

As for Saddam, he admitted ordering the execution of 148 men, calling it justified in wartime against allies of Shi'ite Iran, and then after the verdict he asked the Iraqi people not to retaliate.



[edit on 11/5/06 by makeitso]

Originally posted by shots
Does anyone know or has anyone heard when the appeal will take place?

From the base article:

Within 10 days, the court will forward the cases of Hussein and three other defendants to the appellate chamber of the Iraqi High Tribunal. Appeals of death penalties and life sentences are automatic.

Within 20 days after the appeals are made, the prosecution and the defense must submit their documents to the appellate chamber.

A court official told The Associated Press the appeals process was likely to take three to four weeks once the formal paperwork was submitted.

However, there is no time limit for the appellate court to rule on the appeal.

Once the court does reach a decision, if the sentences are upheld, they must be carried out in 30 days.

So, it's 30 days to file, followed by who knows how much time, followed by another 30 days, max.

Originally posted by makeitso
Perhaps to those living in countries where due process is the normal course of life, this trial may have seemed a sham, or to have a preset verdict, but for the some of the Iraqi people, the outcome did not seem so concrete.

They were not sure that Saddam would be found guilty, or they worried that he may somehow come back to power. Now that the verdict has been handed down it seems to represent a turning point in their minds. Reassuring them that for the first time in that region those in power can be held directly responsible for their actions, even imposing the death penalty.

It also sends a message to the the present Iraqi government, and the entire region. You could wind up with a rope around your neck. A rope put there by your own people, if you don't play nice with them. That's a good thing isn't it?

You presented some very powerful truths, makeitso. What this trial did for the Iraqi people is more important than the verdict. For that you have earned a WATS.

You have voted makeitso for the Way Above Top Secret award. You have two more votes this month.

Does anyone here think the verdict was deliberately timed to give Bush a boost in the midterms?

Originally posted by jsobecky
So, it's 30 days to file, followed by who knows how much time, followed by another 30 days, max.

Well my bad I should have read the base source first DUH!

That still leaves the important question unanswered though, will the appeal take precident over the current trial or do we have to wait until it is over with? My assumption would be the appeal will have to wait, but I hope I am wrong.

[edit on 11/5/2006 by shots]

Didn't I see ... Oh, Yes. Here it is.

the Anfal trial against Saddam will continue while the appeals court considers the verdict of death against him in the Dujail case.

If the appeals court upholds the death sentence against Saddam in the Dujail case and the sentence is ratified, all other cases against him would cease, and he would be hanged within 30 days.

A glance at what's next after Saddam Hussein's sentencing

Interesting to say the least! Then does that mean the appeal is heard only by the coutrt with no lawyers presenting evidence?

I might be missing something here but, an appeal to me indicates the lawyers would be given a chance to prove their case, but I could well be wrong.

Edit to add: I think I realize the point I was missing first the lawers have to prove they have grounds for an appeal at which time the court can rule no, so I stand corrected

[edit on 11/5/2006 by shots]

haha, PardonSaddam.com

Am I the only one who doesn't agree with this sentence? Fair enough, he isn't exactly the nicest of people, but two wrongs don't make a right. Besides, Blair and Bush have commited crimes against humanity, I don't see anybody asking for a trial against them.

Saddam's sentence should have been life in prison, not an easy escape.

So, was Saddam tried under laws that were created after the alleged crimes took place? I never understood why he wasn't tried under international law.

Plus, my guess is that this is Bush's surprise for the elections, probably pushed for a verdict to come out right about now.