AMMAN, Nov 2: The family of toppled Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein on Tuesday sacked the Jordanian head of his defence team amid bickering over the handling of his case, as they await his trial on charges of crimes against humanity.

"We the undersigned have decided to discharge you since we cannot continue to work together," said a statement signed by Saddam's wife Sajida and three daughters and addressed to Jordanian lawyer Mohammad Rashdan.

Other members of Saddam's Amman-based defence team confirmed Mr Rashdan had been dismissed, accusing him of acting alone and seeking to be the sole lawyer for the former president.

A statement signed by team spokesman Ziad Khassawneh and two other lawyers charged that Mr Rashdan had "begun during recent months to act unilaterally and in his personal capacity without coordinating" with them.

Mr Rashdan travelled to the United States "amid very critical developments on all levels regarding the trials of president Saddam Hussein and his comrades", the Amman-based defence team said.

They reiterated charges made last month that the special Iraqi tribunal set up to try Saddam was seeking to organize a sham trial.

"The Iraqi tribunal is trying, through the Iraqi lawyers' association, to convince them to assume the rule of defence," the statement said.

It identified one of these lawyers as Khalil Dulaimi, "the president of the defence committee in the Al Anbar region" west of Baghdad, adding that Mr Dulaimi had refused to work with anyone other than the Amman team.

"Meanwhile, Mr Rashdan, without even the consent or the knowledge of the defence committee, addressed the Iraqi tribunal through the Iraqi lawyers' association asking to be the sole lawyer" for Saddam, they said.

Mr Rashdan dismissed the charges and in turn accused Khassawneh and Jordanian lawyer Hatem Shahin of misappropriating 270,000 dollars that had been earmarked for Saddam's defence.-AFP