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Hussein Pleads Not Guilty To Crimes Against Humanity
19 October 2005 -- Ousted Iraqi president Saddam Hussein today pleaded not guilty to charges of crimes against humanity.
At the start of the trial in Baghdad, Hussein refused to give his name to the judge, and said he does not recognize the authority of the court: "I do not recognize the side that authorized or appointed you, or the aggression, because whatever is based on the false is false."Hussein and seven other men, all members of Iraq's former ruling Ba'ath Party, face charges that they ordered the killing of more than 140 people from the mainly Shi'ite Muslim village of Al-Dujayl after a failed 1982 assassination attempt on Hussein in the town.
One other defendant, former Vice President Taha Yasin Ramadan, also defied the judge, refusing to give his name and denouncing the legitimacy of the court. The other defendants stated their names when asked.
The eight men face possible execution if found guilty by the court.
(AP/Reuters/AFP)
Copyright (c) 2005. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org
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