saddam sentenced to death

Saddam Hussein has been sentenced to death by hanging. The former Iraqi dictator shouted down the verdict: "Life for the glorious nation, and death to its enemies!"




Former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein stands as the verdict is delivered during his trial, Sunday Nov. 5, 2006. (AP / Scott Nelson)

The court also sentenced Awad Hamed al-Bandar, the head of Iraq's former Revolutionary Court, to death by hanging.

Iraq's former Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan was convicted of premeditated murder and sentenced to life in prison.

Three other co-defendants were found guilty of murder and torture. One defendant was acquitted for lack of evidence.

A trembling Saddam, who wanted to sit but was forced by guards to stand for the verdict, yelled out defiantly: "Long live the people and death to their enemies. Long live the glorious nation, and death to its enemies!"

The former Iraqi dictator and his seven co-defendants were found guilty for a wave of revenge killings of 148 Shiite Muslims in the town of Dujail after a 1982 assassination attempt on Saddam. Al-Maliki's Islamic Dawa party, then an underground opposition, has claimed responsibility for organizing the attempt on Saddam's life.

The case will now move to an appeal court within the next 10 days, and if the sentence is confirmed, Saddam will face execution within 30 days.

"The verdict placed on the heads of the former regime does not represent a verdict for any one person. It is a verdict on a whole dark era that is unmatched in Iraq's history," Nouri al-Maliki, Iraq's Shiite prime minister, said.

U.S. President George Bush described the verdict as a "major achievement," for Iraq.

"Saddam Hussein's trial is a milestone in the Iraqi people's efforts to replace the rule of a tyrant with the rule of law. It's a major achievement for Iraq's young democracy and its constitutional government."

In a brief press conference Sunday afternoon, Bush noted Saddam's trial heard from 130 witnesses and brought him face to face with his victims as they recounted the crimes committed against them.

"Today the victims of the regime have received a measure of the justice many thought would never come," Bush said.

Earlier in the day White House spokesman Tony Snow said the verdict was "absolute proof that you've got an independent judiciary in Iraq" that operates fairly and openly. He dismissed allegations that the Bush administration orchestrated the timing of the decision, coming as it did just before Tuesday's U.S. midterm election.

The historic trial wrapped up as Saddam is in the midst of a second trial which began in August, on charges of genocide against the Kurds.

Most of Iraq was in lockdown in anticipation of more violence from insurgent groups and Saddam supporters.

Clashes immediately broke out Sunday in north Baghdad's heavily Sunni Azamiyah district, and a Sunni political leader condemned the court decision.

"This government will be responsible for the consequences, with the deaths of hundreds, thousands or even hundreds of thousands, whose blood will be shed," Salih al-Mutlaq, the Sunni politician, told the al-Arabiya satellite television station.

Saddam's chief lawyer Khalil al-Dulaimi condemned the trial as a "farce," and claimed the verdict was planned.

However, he told The Associated Press that Saddam called on Iraqis to reject sectarian violence and to refrain from taking revenge on U.S. troops in Iraq.

"His message to the Iraqi people was 'pardon and do not take revenge on the invading nations and their people'," al-Dulaimi. "The president also asked his countrymen to 'unify in the face of sectarian strife.'"

In Saddam's hometown of Tikrit, 1,000 people defied a curfew and carried pictures of Saddam through the streets. Some condemned the ruling, which they said was orchestrated by the U.S.

"By our souls, by our blood we sacrifice for you Saddam" and "Saddam your name shakes America."

The U.S. embassy in Baghdad, meanwhile, issued a statement saying the decision marks a historic moment for Iraq, calling it "an opportunity to unite and build a better future.''

Saddam's supporters had threatened bloodshed if he was convicted at the end of the nine-month trial, and U.S. and Iraqi forces stepped up security Saturday in a country that is in a constant state of martial law.

New security checkpoints sprang up around the city late last week ahead of the ruling. Military patrols were increased and a main

Baghdad bridge that carries traffic past the Green Zone has been blocked off.

The curfew is in place until further notice, keeping people at home and vehicles off the streets. Baghdad's airport was also shut down.

The clampdown comes as a wave of increased violence sweeps Iraq. Police found the bodies of 87 torture victims throughout the capital over Thursday and Friday, and across Iraq, at least 16 people were killed or found dead on Saturday.

Such heavy security measures haven't been seen in Iraq since the sectarian bombing of a Shiite shrine in Samarra last February.