Special report: Trial of Saddam Hussein 
                         Tension accelerates in Iraq 

   

Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein listens to charges read by Judge Raouf Abdel Rahman during his trial in a court in Baghdad May 15, 2006. (Xinhua/AFP)

BAGHDAD, May 15 (Xinhua) -- The trial of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein and his seven codefendants over charges against humanity resumed in a court in Baghdad on Monday.

    Chief judge Raouf Abdul-Rahman, a Kurd, started the session by reading specific charges against Saddam and his seven aides over the killing of 148 Shiite men in a northern village after an assassination attempt on Saddam's life there in 1982.

    Under the official charges read out by Abdul-Rahman, Saddam was accused of murder, torture of women and children and illegal arrest of 399 people from Dujail village after the assassination attempt.

    "You issued orders to security forces and the army to arrest residents and use all weapons against them after you allegedly came under an assassination attempt," the Kurdish chief judge said.

    "As a result of your orders, nine people in Dujail were killed during the first two days following the assassination attempt and 399 others were arrested afterwards," he added.

    Saddam, however, refused to plead the charges."I can't just answer yes or no since what you have read is for public consumption and I can't give a brief answer," Saddam said when asked by Abdul-Rahman whether he pleaded guilty or not to the charges.

    "I am still the president of Iraq according to the will of the Iraqi people," Saddam told Abdul-Rahman, who pleaded on behalf of Saddam "not guilty."

    Abdul-Rahman then called in the next defendant, Barzan Ibrahimal-Tikrit, who was Saddam's half brother and former intelligence chief.

    The judge read the charges against Ibrahim of murder, torture and ordering the execution of 148 Shiite men after the Dujail incident.

    "All what you said are lies," Ibrahim retorted.

    Abdul-Rahman then called in the remaining defendants one by one and declared the official charges against them.

    After that, the court is expected to give the defense team time to make its case.

    According to Iraqi law, the court should first hear the plaintiffs' complaints against the defendants and the prosecutions' evidences against them and then the defense team is to have its say and bring out defense witnesses.

    In earlier sessions, the prosecution team presented its side of the case and many prosecution witnesses testified at court.Saddam and his seven codefendants are accused of involvement in the 1982 killing in Dujail village.

    If convicted, they might face death penalty.

    Another trial of Saddam over the killings of estimated 100,000 Kurds in the late 1980s is also expected to be launched soon.Enditem