Saddam’s death sentence to go ahead

By Nadia Samie
27 December 2006

Former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein could be hanged on anytime over the next 30 days, after an appeal against his execution failed. Saddam was sentenced by an Iraqi court for killings in the town of Dujail in 1982.

The BBC reports that under Iraqi law the execution must go ahead regardless of the fact that he is currently on trial in a second case in connection with a military campaign against Kurdish communities in the 1980s.

The time and location of Saddam’s execution has not been made public. It is thought that this will only be revealed after the former president is dead, in an attempt to avoid unrest.

There has been mixed reaction to the sentence. The US government has hailed the ruling a landmark in Iraq's efforts "to replace the rule of a tyrant with the rule of law". A number of groups have complained about the legality of the proceedings, including US-based Human Rights Watch. Meanwhile, India has called for clemency and the European Union (EU) has urged Iraq not to carry out the death sentence.

According to the BBC, Saddam Hussein's lawyer, Khalil al-Dulaimi, said that the court's verdict "was expected".

"We were not at all surprised, as we are convinced that this has been — 100% — a political trial," he said.