Iraqi tribunal confirms Saddam trial date

BAGHDAD (Reuters) – Iraq’s special tribunal, the court set
up to try Saddam Hussein, confirmed on Monday that the former
president would be tried on October 19 for crimes against
humanity, but said it had the right to delay the trial.

In a statement, the tribunal said Saddam and six others,
including his former vice-president and his half-brother, would
be tried in connection with the deaths of 143 Shi’ite men from
the village of Dujail following an 1982 assassination attempt.

The trial date was previously announced by the Iraqi
government, but had not been confirmed by the tribunal.

In a separate statement, the tribunal, which has been
furiously protective of its independence, said it had the right
to delay the trial “when there are good reasons.”

“When there is a request to delay the trial and it is
legal, the IST will agree,” it said in the statement dated
September 1.

“This delay would be according to the article 162 of penal
procedure of the IST,” it added, without specifying what the
article stipulated.

Saddam’s chief lawyer, Khalil al-Dulaimi, has indicated
that he will file for a delay when he appears in court on
October 19.

He says he has not had enough time to prepare for the
trial, particularly to review the evidence against his client.
Iraqi officials say he has been given sufficient time in
accordance with Iraqi law.

Dulaimi and his defense team are also expected to question
the legitimacy of the court, which was established during the
U.S. occupation that followed the 2003 invasion.

Sources close to the tribunal have indicated that October
19 may see a brief appearance by Saddam and his co-defendants
followed by an immediate postponement for the trial judge to
consider defense motions.

Dujail is the only crime for which Saddam has so far been
charged, although he and a dozen of his former top lieutenants
were informed last year that they could be tried for genocide
and war crimes for the killing of Kurds in the 1980s and the
brutal suppression of uprisings by Shi’ites and Kurds in 1991.

Evidence is still being gathered by the special tribunal in
connection with those cases.