Saddam, Co-Defendant Ejected From Court
By SAMEER N. YACOUB and JAMAL HALABY
BAGHDAD, Iraq – Saddam Hussein was ejected from his genocide trial for the second consecutive day following heated arguments with the chief judge Tuesday.
Saddam’s former defense minister, Sultan Hashim Ahmad al-Tai, was ejected for shouting at judge Mohammed Oreibi al-Khalifa for throwing out the deposed leader.
The trial resumed after an hour without Saddam and all six of his co-defendants.
The outburst began when Saddam refused to remain silent after repeated requests by al-Khalifa, the head of the five-member judges’ panel.
Saddam, clutching his Muslim holy book – the Quran – tried to make a statement, interrupting the prosecution’s questioning of a witness.
"You are a defendant and I’m the judge," al-Khalifa said, telling Saddam to sit down. Saddam refused and continued talking even though the judge shut off court microphones.
Saddam’s six co-defendants then began to shout.
"Shut up, no one may speak!" al-Khalifa shouted, pointing his finger at the defendant.
"The court decided to eject Saddam Hussein from the courtroom," al-Khalifa added.
Saddam left with a smile.
The other defendants stood up in protest and demanded they leave too, but the judge refused. It was not immediately clear why the defendants who had not been ejected were absent when the trial resumed.
Al-Tai, a defense minister under Saddam and one of six co-defendants in the trial, was the most vocal, shouting insults at al-Khalifa.
"I’m not sitting down!" shouted al-Tai, pointing his finger at the judge. "I served in the army for 44 years and no one dared to shout at me. We are polite and well behaved."
Al-Khalifa growled: "You won’t leave, but you can remain standing, if you wish."
But an enraged al-Tai kept shouting at the judge.
"We decided to eject Sultan Hashim from the courtroom!" al-Khalifa yelled.
After Al-Khalifa ordered a one-hour recess, a curtain was abruptly closed on journalists and microphones were cut off in the courtroom.
Saddam and his co-defendants have been on trial since Aug. 21 for their roles in a 1987-1988 crackdown on Kurdish rebels.
The prosecution says about 180,000 people, mostly civilians, died in the military offensive – code-named Operation Anfal – which allegedly included the use of chemical weapons. The defendants could face the death penalty if convicted.
In an earlier exchange Tuesday, al-Khalifa warned Saddam to respect court procedures, saying that he would be given opportunity to speak, but that he would not be permitted to mock the proceedings.
"You are a defendant here. You have rights and obligations," al-Khalifa told Saddam. "This is a court – not a political forum."
He told Saddam to limit his comments to matters pertinent to the trial and that he must rise to address the tribunal – "not to speak while sitting down."
"I won’t tolerate that," the judge said, emphasizing that the defendants must respect the court.
"The truth will be revealed, through the court to the whole world, if you are innocent or guilty," he added.
But "by mocking the court and matters related to the court, you are only harming yourself and damaging your case," al-Khalifa said.
Saddam asked for permission to respond. When al-Khalifa agreed, the deposed Iraqi leader took out a piece of paper – apparently to read a prepared statement.
But the judge interrupted, saying he would not allow him to read it "if it was the same letter I received from you."
Saddam ignored the call. The judge allowed him to read the statement – standing up – for 20 minutes, but cut off microphones in the courtroom.
On Monday, Saddam was thrown out of the courtroom after he protested the court’s appointment of lawyers replacing his own.
Saddam’s defense team boycotted proceedings after accusing the court of violating judicial procedures. Al-Khalifa appointed replacement lawyers so the hearings could continue.
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Associated Press writers Sameer N. Yacoub reported from Baghdad and Jamal Halaby from Amman, Jordan. Some material in this story came from a pool report at the trial in Baghdad.