Saddam’s Death Sentence Upheld on Appeal

A Baghdad appeals court on Tuesday upheld the death sentence for deposed Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein for a 1982 massacre of 148 Shiite men in Dujail.

The appeals court approved the verdict to hang Saddam, court spokesman Mouwafak al-Ruabaie said.

The court also upheld death sentences for two of Saddam’s co-defendants, and under Iraqi law, the executions must be conducted within 30 days, the BBC reported. Under international law, governments can order a stay but Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has indicated he will not interfere, CNN reported.

Saddam was sentenced Nov. 5 for the incident that prosecutors said was revenge for a foiled assassination plot, on Saddam, a Sunni Muslim.

Saddam is also on trial on charges of using chemical weapons against Kurds in northern Iraq in 1997-98. Justice officials said that trial will continue regardless of whether Saddam is executed.