usafbalad
11-28-2005, 05:10 AM
BAGHDAD, Nov 28 (*******) - Protesters demanding the execution of Saddam Hussein filled the streeets of one Iraqi village while others in his hometown rallied in support of the deposed leader whose trial was about to resume on Monday.
"Dujail's people ask for the execution of Saddam and his followers for the crimes they committed against Dujail's people and martyrs," one banner read in the village about 60 km (35 miles) north of Baghdad.
The demonstrations were staged as the trial of Saddam and seven co-defendants on charges of crimes against humanity related to events in Dujail 23 years ago was about to resume in a fortified Baghdad courtroom.
While critics have accused Saddam of mass killings and widespread torture over decades, the current trial refers to one specific incident in Dujail.
Saddam and the other defendants are charged with ordering the deaths of 148 young Shi'ite men from the town following an attempt on his life in July 1982. The trial resumes after a 40-day adjournment.
The trial is taking place against a backdrop of sectarian tension and a bloody insurgency led by Sunni Arabs, once dominant under Saddam, against the Shi'ite and Kurdish-led government and its U.S. backers.
"We ask for the execution of the infidel Saddam and his corrupted followers," said one banner held aloft in Dujail.
"Hurry up with the execution of Saddam and his followers in order to curb terrorism," said another.
Others in the crowd held aloft photographs of alleged victims.
But pro-Saddam demonstrators also took to the streets in his hometown of Tikrit, still a stronghold of Sunni militants about 175 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad. Saddam was captured near Tikrit in December 2003.
The Tikrit protesters marched to the village of Awja, Saddam's birthplace just to the north of the town, holding photographs of the former president and chanting "Yes, yes to Saddam!"
The demonstrations were widely broadcast on Iraqi television.
A ******* cameraman in Dujail said an al-Arabiya television crew was beaten by demonstrators in Dujail because people there had seen the network's coverage of the pro-Saddam demonstrations in Tikrit.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/TAI828347.htm
"Dujail's people ask for the execution of Saddam and his followers for the crimes they committed against Dujail's people and martyrs," one banner read in the village about 60 km (35 miles) north of Baghdad.
The demonstrations were staged as the trial of Saddam and seven co-defendants on charges of crimes against humanity related to events in Dujail 23 years ago was about to resume in a fortified Baghdad courtroom.
While critics have accused Saddam of mass killings and widespread torture over decades, the current trial refers to one specific incident in Dujail.
Saddam and the other defendants are charged with ordering the deaths of 148 young Shi'ite men from the town following an attempt on his life in July 1982. The trial resumes after a 40-day adjournment.
The trial is taking place against a backdrop of sectarian tension and a bloody insurgency led by Sunni Arabs, once dominant under Saddam, against the Shi'ite and Kurdish-led government and its U.S. backers.
"We ask for the execution of the infidel Saddam and his corrupted followers," said one banner held aloft in Dujail.
"Hurry up with the execution of Saddam and his followers in order to curb terrorism," said another.
Others in the crowd held aloft photographs of alleged victims.
But pro-Saddam demonstrators also took to the streets in his hometown of Tikrit, still a stronghold of Sunni militants about 175 km (110 miles) north of Baghdad. Saddam was captured near Tikrit in December 2003.
The Tikrit protesters marched to the village of Awja, Saddam's birthplace just to the north of the town, holding photographs of the former president and chanting "Yes, yes to Saddam!"
The demonstrations were widely broadcast on Iraqi television.
A ******* cameraman in Dujail said an al-Arabiya television crew was beaten by demonstrators in Dujail because people there had seen the network's coverage of the pro-Saddam demonstrations in Tikrit.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/TAI828347.htm