Still Defiant, Hussein Faces Down Iraqi Judge

A thinner, more wrinkled Saddam Hussein, brought to court in chains and an off-the-rack suit jacket, defiantly faced down a young Iraqi judge Thursday when he was arraigned on seven charges related to the killing of thousands of people during his decades as the absolute ruler of Iraq.

During a 26-minute court appearance that took place on the grounds of one of his former palaces, the former Baath Party leader, who had not been seen publicly since his December arrest, showed that he had lost none of his acerbic temperament.

Speaking to a lone judge who under rules of the court could not be identified, Hussein said he should be addressed as the current president of Iraq. He questioned the legitimacy of the proceeding and called President Bush a “criminal,” his planned trial an election-year “farce,” and the Kuwaitis whose country he invaded and occupied in 1990 “dogs” and “mad dogs.” At the last insult, the judge admonished Hussein to mind his language.

Insisting that the court had no jurisdiction to strip him of his presidential immunity for alleged crimes committed during his rule, Hussein refused in the end to sign a statement acknowledging that he had been informed of his rights and that he had been read the charges against him. He waved off the document, saying that he needed to consult an attorney.

In addition to Hussein, 11 “high-value detainees” were brought from their detention facilities in a specially armored bus to the courthouse. They included former Deputy Prime Minister Tarik Aziz and Ali Hassan Majid, known as “Chemical Ali” for his suspected role in a 1988 chemical attack on a Kurdish village.

Compared with Hussein, the other defendants appeared, to varying degrees, uncertain and fearful, and more willing to cooperate with the court. Several complained that they had not been allowed to contact their families. Their defense against the charges they faced was, in effect, that they had been simply following orders and should not be held responsible for decisions made by the country’s leadership.

Hussein’s trial promises to be the most-followed of a political leader in years, and already has divided Iraqis. One radio survey in Baghdad showed listeners almost evenly split between favoring execution and setting him free. Human rights activists have questioned whether Hussein would receive a fair trial in Iraq, which is still unstable and riven by violence.

The trial will also be a major test of interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi’s new government, which is hoping that the airing and punishing of brutal deeds carried out by Hussein’s regime can enhance its own legitimacy.

A day earlier, the U.S. military formerly transferred legal custody of Hussein to the Iraqi government, although American troops continue to guard him at an undisclosed location.

Thursday’s arraignment was the first step toward a trial. After lawyers are retained for Hussein and the other defendants, an investigating judge will spend at least six months gathering evidence and questioning witnesses.

The new government has already decided to rescind the suspension of the death penalty that had been ordered by former U.S. administrator L. Paul Bremer III. If Hussein is found guilty, he could face either a firing squad or hanging, said Deputy Foreign Minister Hamid Bayati, a Shiite Muslim politician who had been imprisoned several times by Hussein’s government.

U.S. and Iraqi authorities took pains to make the court proceedings appear to be solely an Iraqi undertaking. They also tried, unsuccessfully, to ensure that Hussein’s words would not be heard outside the courtroom.

Pool journalists supplied a videotape of the proceedings and photographers were allowed to release images that were vetted by the U.S. military.

Pool reporters were told not to record Hussein’s voice, but an unauthorized audiotape found its way to the media.

When Hussein entered the courtroom at 2:20 p.m., he saw only an Iraqi, sitting in judgment. A Koran covered in green velvet sat on the table in front of the judge.

Hussein was brought to the courthouse in manacles. Inside the sunlit courtroom, the sound of the clanking chains around his waist heralded his entrance before the limited audience permitted inside.

When he was unshackled and allowed to enter, it was clear that Hussein did not know what he should expect. He blinked, shook his head, glanced at the Iraqi judge seated in a black robe with gold embroidery and looked over at the bank of spectators as if trying to discern who was important. Two burly guards from the Iraqi Correctional Services led him by the arms and into a black leather chair directly in front of the judge, who was seated behind a table.

Visibly thinner than when he was captured, his gray-speckled beard now closely cropped and his hair neatly combed, Hussein looked fit but “shrunken,” according to people in the courtroom. He was asked immediately to identify himself.

“I am Saddam Hussein, president of the Republic of Iraq and commander in chief of the armed forces,” he answered.

When the judge asked him to state his full name, he responded: “Saddam Hussein al Majid, president of the Republic of Iraq and commander in chief of the armed forces.”

“Former president of Iraq and former commander of the dissolved armed forces,” the judge corrected him.

Appearing more comfortable as the hearing progressed, the 67-year-old Hussein gesticulated and parried with the judge, who looked at least 25 years younger than the former president and maintained a calm and authoritative demeanor.

“So you are an Iraqi representing the coalition forces?” Hussein asked.

“No, I am an Iraqi representing the Iraqi judicial system,” the judge replied.

After explaining that this was a preliminary hearing, and that Hussein would have the right to legal counsel, the right to cross-examine witnesses and see the evidence against him, the judge read out a list of the seven general charges against him.

Under Iraq’s Napoleonic legal system, the charges will be refined after an inquiry by the investigating judge. If sufficient evidence is found, a formal indictment will follow.

The charges are related to the intentional killing of religious figures in 1974, the gassing of Kurds in the village of Halabja in 1988, the massacre of members of the Kurdish Barzani clan in 1983, the killing of political leaders over the past 30 years, the 1988 Anfal massacre of Kurds, the violent suppression of revolts by Kurds and Shiite Muslims in the aftermath of the 1991 Persian Gulf War and the 1990 invasion of Kuwait.

In reply, Hussein said the actions were taken in his role as president. In the case of using chemical weapons against the Kurds at Halabja, he said he had “heard on the radio” such an event had occurred during his presidency. But when the judge mentioned the invasion of Kuwait, Hussein challenged him.

“I am surprised that you, an Iraqi, could charge this,” he said.

“How could Saddam be tried over [invading] a Kuwait that said it will reduce Iraqi women to 10-dinar prostitutes,” he continued. “He defended Iraq’s honor and revived its historical rights over those dogs.”

When told that a lawyer would be provided if he could not afford one, Hussein replied sarcastically, “According to the Americans, I have millions of dollars in Geneva.”

But for all his bravura, there were moments in the courtroom when Hussein looked nervous and deflated. At one point, he produced a pen and a slip of yellow paper and began jotting notes against the palm of his hand.

Before the proceedings began, U.S. military officials explained that the courthouse building, which had been connected to a mosque at the palace grounds, had been converted in January into a court to be used for military trials. It had been used recently for the courts-martial of two soldiers accused of abusing Iraqi prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison.

The palace itself is now within the confines of the sprawling Camp Victory, the main U.S. military complex near Baghdad international airport.

The “high-value detainees,” who normally wear blue prison jumpsuits, had been measured for suits before the trial began. Their trial clothes were purchased for them at an ordinary Baghdad shop by a U.S. warrant officer, the officials said.

While in power, Hussein favored either an olive-green military uniform or expensive hand-made Italian suits. Thursday, he was given a charcoal-gray pinstripe jacket, dark slacks, black shoes and a white dress shirt, with no tie or belt -- in keeping with a rule not to allow inmates any article with which they could harm themselves.

Hussein was brought in first and the court adjourned for 40 minutes while he was taken away. The proceedings then resumed and hearings of the other 11 accused continued one by one until almost 7 p.m.

The best known of the other defendants was Aziz, who for years communicated Hussein’s policies to the world.

A cigar-chomping bon vivant Christian in the Sunni Muslim-dominated Baathist hierarchy, he was known for his smooth and articulate debating skills. But at the hearing, he sought to distance himself from “mistakes” of the regime.

“If there is a crime, the moral responsibility rests with the leadership, but a member of the leadership cannot be held personally responsible. I never killed any person by any direct act,” he argued.