Furore over Execution Continues Unabated

Dahr Jamail and Ali al-Fadhily, Inter Press Service

Expressions of outrage over the conduct of the trial and the manner of Saddam Hussein's rushed, chaotic execution are continuing unabated here as lawyers and human rights groups voice together their open criticism -- although some are still cautiously asking the media to withhold their names from publication. Iraqi and international legal experts appear in agreement that the special court which sentenced the former Iraqi leader to the gallows was illegally set up and failed to meet international recognised standards. They recalled that former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said on Sep. 16, 2004 that the invasion and occupation of Iraq violated the UN Charter. This made the setting up of the so-called special Iraqi High Tribunal to try Saddam illegal (...) "The verdict was pre-judged by the Bush administration and its Iraqi allies. The court was a disgusting comedy," a senior member of the Iraqi Lawyers' Union told IPS on condition of anonymity...

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