BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Saddam Hussein's
half-brother and former intelligence chief
personally tortured prisoners and sent families to
die in the desert, lawyers for victims of a 1982
crackdown against Shi'ites, told a court on Monday.
"We demand the court inflict the utmost punishments
and also demand the financial and moral compensation
for our clients for the damage they received," a
lawyer representing people persecuted after an
assassination attempt against Saddam in the village
of Dujail told the judge in closing remarks.
Saddam, his half-brother and co-accused Barzan al-Tikriti
and six other defendants face death by hanging if
found guilty for their roles in the killing of 148
Shi'ites in Dujail.
"The chief of intelligence, defendant Barzan, was
participating personally in torturing our clients,"
one of the three lawyers representing the Dujail
victims said.
Barzan, who like all the other defendants was
present in the courtroom, was once one of Iraq's
most feared men.
Lawyers for the Dujail victims asked the U.S.-backed
court to withhold their identities, saying they
feared for their lives. Prosecutors are due to make
their closing statements later on Monday in a
heavily fortified Baghdad courtroom.
Chief Judge Raouf Abdel Rahman is moving to wrap up
a case that began in October and has been marred by
the killings of two defense lawyers, the resignation
of a judge and public tirades from the defendants.
Rahman has said defense should deliver its final
remarks on July 10.
Once final statements are in, a five-judge panel is
expected to adjourn to consider a verdict. Any
sentence of execution for the former Iraqi president
could be delayed by appeals and possibly up to a
dozen other trials for war crimes and genocide.
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Chief Judge Raouf Abdel Rahman
Former dictator Saddam Hussein
Photo : AFP |
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