Former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein walked out of court amid uproar
within minutes of the resumption of his murder trial under a new
presiding judge.
Saddam Hussein has been on trial since last October
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He left in protest after his defence team walked out, and was followed by two more of his co-defendants.
The walkouts came after the new chief judge, Raouf Abdul
Rahman, had Saddam's half brother and co-defendant Barzan al-Tikriti
removed from the courtroom.
Saddam and seven others are on trial for the 1982 killing of 148 villagers.
They could face the death penalty if convicted of the
killings, which followed an assassination attempt on Saddam Hussein in
the village of Dujail.
The trial continued for some time with half of the defendants missing until the judge adjourned it until on Wednesday.
New court rules
The court proceedings started with the new chief judge
saying that he would not tolerate any defendants making political
speeches or disobeying his authority.
His predecessor, Judge Rizgar Amin, had resigned earlier
this month after criticism that he had been too lenient towards the
defendants.
Judge Rahman said from the start that he would not tolerate outbursts
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Mr al-Tikriti, a former Iraqi intelligence chief who is
suffering from cancer, launched into a lengthy complaint about his
medical condition and treatment.
Judge Rahman ordered the forcible removal of Mr
al-Tikriti, who shouted that the court was "the daughter of a whore" as
he was dragged away.
The judge then rounded on the defence lawyers, saying
that they had contributed to the atmosphere that allowed defendants to
think they could make lengthy speeches and disrespect the authority of
the court.
Next, a defence lawyer was ejected from the court, and
as a result the rest of Saddam's defence team stormed out, despite the
judge warning "any lawyer who walks out will not be allowed back into
this courtroom".
Heated exchange
The former Iraqi leader then launched into a vigorous
exchange with the judge, telling him that he wanted to leave and be
tried in absentia.
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I am the judge, you are the defendant. You have to obey me
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"I want to leave the court," Saddam demanded of the judge, who in turn ordered the former leader out.
"I led you for 35 years and you order me out of the court?" Saddam responded angrily.
"I am the judge, you are the defendant. You have to obey me," the judge hit back.
He accused Judge Rahman of abusing his rights as a defendant who was "innocent until proven guilty".
As the argument became more heated Saddam banged his hands on the dock and hurled insults at the judge.
Eventually, the judge said that Saddam should also be
removed and he was led from the court too, shouting "Down with the
traitors!" as he went.
'Justice undermined'
Judge Rahman then appointed four new defence lawyers,
but two more of the defendants, Taha Yassin Ramadan and Awad Hamed
al-Bandar, said they did not approve of their appointment and they also
left the court.
The trial then resumed with an anonymous female witness giving evidence
about events in Dujail from behind a curtain until it was adjourned
till Wednesday.
Saad Djebbar, an international lawyer and commentator on
Middle East politics told the BBC that the chaotic scenes meant that
the whole trial was being undermined:
"I think it was a big mistake that this trial was held
in Iraq because the judge, you cannot find a person, one individual
today in Iraq - judge, lawyer, prosecutor who is impartial vis a vis
Saddam Hussein. Either they are with him or against him."
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