BAGHDAD, March 1: Saddam Hussein admitted in court on Wednesday that he gave orders that led to the execution of villagers in the 1980s, but justified the punishment as his right as Iraq’s president, saying: “Where is the crime?”
Saddam made the admission, along with another that he ordered farmland to be razed, during his second day in court this week on charges of crimes against humanity.
In hours of proceedings, prosecutors read out documents, showed satellite images and played audio tapes in an attempt to link Saddam to the execution of 148 people from Dujail after an attempt on his life in the village in July 1982.
A US diplomat familiar with the court said Saddam’s statements were damning evidence that could lead trial judges to decide there is sufficient evidence to issue a guilty verdict.
“I referred them to the revolutionary court according to the law. Awad was implementing the law, he had a right to convict and acquit,” Saddam said, referring to his co-accused Awad al Bandar, the former chief of the Revolutionary Court.
“I razed them ... we specified the farmland of those who were convicted and I signed,” said Saddam, who faces hanging if convicted.
“It’s the right of the state to confiscate or to compensate. So where is the crime?”
Describing how gunmen fired machineguns as his motorcade drove through the town during a visit, Saddam said: “I saw the bullets with my own eyes.”
The trial, which began last October, was adjourned until March 12, the latest in a series of adjournments in the stilted process that some international observers have criticised.
Saddam was uncharacteristically subdued in court as chief prosecutor Jaafar al Moussawi presented what he said were documents containing Saddam’s handwriting, showed aerial pictures of fields laid waste around Dujail and played an audio tape of Saddam in discussion with a Baath party official.
On Tuesday, Mr Moussawi presented what he said was a death warrant signed by Saddam.
In previous proceedings, the judge heard testimony from witnesses recounting how they were tortured by Saddam’s aides, but was shown no direct evidence linking Saddam to the crimes.
Prosecutors hope the Dujail case will prove more clear-cut than other, more complex cases involving charges of genocide where Saddam’s responsibility may be more difficult to prove.
Defence counsel have argued that Saddam Hussein was Iraq’s president at the time and that he acted within the law.
“What we saw today was not Saddam admitting guilt, but admitting to the fact that he acted in accordance with his official duties and powers,” said Nehal Bhuta, a legal expert from Human Rights Watch who has been monitoring the case.—Reuters
