Formal Charges Laid Against Saddam Hussein

The trial of Saddam Hussein in Iraq reached a major milestone on Monday May 15, as the judges in the case approved a formal legal indictment charging him with several counts of crimes against humanity.  The charging document represents the judges' first response to the case made by the prosecution, and indicates that they believe the evidence produced so far during the trial supports these charges.

The next phase of the trial, which has already started, gives the defence the opportunity to rebut the charges laid out in the indictment.  Saddam's co-defendants have begun calling witnesses, and his own witnesses are expected to be called in the next two or three months.  According to sources cited in press reports, the trial can be expected to last until September.

The charges against Saddam are all filed under Article 12 of the court's statute, dealing with crimes against humanity.  To qualify as crimes against humanity, the alleged crimes must have been committed as part of "a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population."  The specific charges relate to a series of actions allegedly taken against the inhabitants of the town of Dujayl, site of an attempt on Saddam Hussein's life in 1982.

According to the indictment, Saddam responded to the attack by ordering the illegal arres of 399 people, the torture of women and children, the digging up of farmland, the murder of nine people in the early phase of the response, and the murder of 148 people executed after supposedly being found responsible for the attempt on his life.

Among the evidence presented during the first part of the trial was a document apparently signed by Saddam ordering the killing of the 148 people who were executed.  Handwriting experts confirmed that the signature was indeed Hussein's, although defence lawyers dispute this.

A few weeks ago, prosecutors referred charges against Saddam Hussein relating to the Anfal campaign against the Kurds in the late 1980s, including genocide.  It is likely that his trial on these charges will begin after the end of testimony in the Dujayl case.

The formal indictment was read by the chief judge in the trial, Raouf Abdel-Rahman, who took over after the first presiding judge resigned from the case in January.

Related Links

Saddam Hussein Trial Blog

Iraqi Special Tribunal

Hussein Ruling Seems to Raise Execution Odds

By John R. Burns

The New York Times, May 15, 2006

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