Hussein left the court accusing it of being an American court after one of his seven co-defendants was expelled from the session for defying the presiding judge. After a defense lawyer was also removed, the entire defense team walked out.
Court-appointed lawyers then took over Hussein's defense.
Earlier, co-defendant Barzan Ibrahim Hassan al-Tikriti and a defense lawyer were forcibly removed from the courtroom.
A new judge, Raouf Abdul Rahman, is now presiding over the trial. His predecessor, Rizgar Mohammed Amin, resigned amid accusations from government officials that he was too lenient toward the defendants.
Hussein and seven co-defendants face charges over the 1982 killing of 148 people in the village of Al-Dujayl.
(AFP, Reuters, AP)
The Tragedy At Al-Dujayl
A protester in Baghdad carries a picture of a relative killed at Al-Dujayl (AFP file photo)
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Former Iraqi dictator SADDAM HUSSEIN and seven of his associates went on trial on October 19, 2005, on charges of crimes against humanity for the regime's role in the deaths of 148 residents from the town of Al-Dujayl, and the imprisonment of 1,500 others following a botched assassination attempt against Hussein there on July 8, 1982. Following the arrests and deportations, the regime leveled the town... (more)See also:
Al-Dujayl Native Tells Her Story
Al-Dujayl Survivor Says 'We Want The Deserved Punishment For The Guilty
