Saddam's trial not possible before formal charges: lawyer
Last Update: Wednesday, June 1, 2005. 11:00am (AEST)
The trial of toppled Iraqi president Saddam Hussein cannot take place until he has been formally charged, one of his lawyers said.
"Before any type of trial can occur, there has to be an indictment and a charge," Giovanni di Stefano told Britain's Press Association news agency.
He was responding to comments by Iraq's current president, Jalal Talbani, earlier on Tuesday that the trial could be held within two months.
"No matter how hopeful the Iraqi president is, there can be no substance to this until the man is properly charged," Mr di Stefano said, who works in both London and Rome.
"We have been told there are 35 truckloads of evidence, but we are yet to have a proper indictment."
Saddam, held in a high security prison in an American military base near Baghdad since his capture in December 2003, appeared in July 2004 before an Iraqi judge for a preliminary hearing.
He is awaiting trial on an array of charges of crimes against humanity, including his regime's brutal campaign against the Kurds in the 1980s.
The former Iraqi dictator could face the death penalty, which was rescinded in Iraq during the US-led occupation but restored by the US-installed caretaker government in August 2004 despite opposition from key US ally Britain and other European states.
Mr Di Stefano said a member of his legal team had met Saddam three months ago: "the second time he has seen him in 20 months".
The defence team, chosen by Saddam's wife Sajida and his three daughters, comprises 24 lawyers including the former French foreign minister Roland Dumas, the daughter of Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi and the former US justice minister Ramsey Clark.
- AFP
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200506/s1381780.htm
Last Update: Wednesday, June 1, 2005. 11:00am (AEST)
The trial of toppled Iraqi president Saddam Hussein cannot take place until he has been formally charged, one of his lawyers said.
"Before any type of trial can occur, there has to be an indictment and a charge," Giovanni di Stefano told Britain's Press Association news agency.
He was responding to comments by Iraq's current president, Jalal Talbani, earlier on Tuesday that the trial could be held within two months.
"No matter how hopeful the Iraqi president is, there can be no substance to this until the man is properly charged," Mr di Stefano said, who works in both London and Rome.
"We have been told there are 35 truckloads of evidence, but we are yet to have a proper indictment."
Saddam, held in a high security prison in an American military base near Baghdad since his capture in December 2003, appeared in July 2004 before an Iraqi judge for a preliminary hearing.
He is awaiting trial on an array of charges of crimes against humanity, including his regime's brutal campaign against the Kurds in the 1980s.
The former Iraqi dictator could face the death penalty, which was rescinded in Iraq during the US-led occupation but restored by the US-installed caretaker government in August 2004 despite opposition from key US ally Britain and other European states.
Mr Di Stefano said a member of his legal team had met Saddam three months ago: "the second time he has seen him in 20 months".
The defence team, chosen by Saddam's wife Sajida and his three daughters, comprises 24 lawyers including the former French foreign minister Roland Dumas, the daughter of Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi and the former US justice minister Ramsey Clark.
- AFP
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200506/s1381780.htm
posted by Kangaroo Brisbane Australia at 8:17 PM
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