Iraq handed over, and the trial of Saddam

seamus

http://www.breakingnews.ie/2004/06/28/story154499.html

Frankly I think moving the handover forward and doing it quickly and quietly has been the single most intelligent decision made since the whole Iraq fiasco began.
No doubt there were many insurgents and Saddam loyalists planning suicide bombings, kidnappings and riots for the 30th, to try and make it a day to remember, for the wrong reasons.

http://www.breakingnews.ie/2004/06/28/story154499.html

This is one thing that I've been hmming and hawing over. Is there sufficient force and will in the new establishment to take Saddam to trial, and sentence him and make it stick? What I really mean is - Are there still die-hards and spies lurking within the new Iraqi Government who could arrange for a silent withdrawal from Iraq, for Saddam, or heaven forbid, put him back in charge?

Sleipnir

That was smart alright but I'm surprised it staying secret.

I heard that he will be kept in a prison with Iraqis "looking after him" but with a strong U.S. presence outside the prison.

Of course, America are only handing him over on the understanding that he will be found guilty!
And of course, they are handing over from a U.S. appointed administration to another U.S. appointed administration but now they can lay the blame of any security lapses on the new appointees whereas before it was the americans themselves who took the blame.

Handy huh?

MeatProduct

Well I wouldn't be too shocked if Sadam got into power again since it was the US administration that put him there to start with. They would have an excuse to kill lots more people then. Wouldn't that be wonderous!

Nick

l3rian

sadam would get a lot of votes if he was running, but he wouldnt win, bush is an expert at rigging elections

mike65

Ho hum ^

The hand over was a good piece of latereral thinking it deprives the terrorists and the media of a good story -

"Iraq goes up in smoke as USA hand over to puppet regime" yadda yadda yadda...:rolleyes:

I dont see whay the trail of Saddam won't happen in a full and effective fashion. The stupid idea propigated by the anti war brigade that Saddam would be welcomed back by many is hogwash. Outside the Sunni-triangle
his name is mud.

Mike.

Sand

Of course, America are only handing him over on the understanding that he will be found guilty!

Of course hes going to be found guilty. He is guilty. His names not OJ and he doesnt have Cochrane representing him so hes all out of luck. They might as well pronounce sentence now.

And of course, they are handing over from a U.S. appointed administration to another U.S. appointed administration but now they can lay the blame of any security lapses on the new appointees whereas before it was the americans themselves who took the blame.

A) Of course theyre appointed - the elections which are planned for January 2005 are in the future, hence they could not have taken place yet, hence they would have to be appointed. It would take a physics book to argue that they being appointed is strange and/or unusual for a provisional government.

Oh, Im sure security lapses will still be blamed on the US. After all it comes under the "everything wrong in the world" category.

BlitzKrieg

it was a smart move from the bush administration (how unusual)



one thing that caught my eye. I was flicking through numerous papers for it while waiting for my hair cut and the Irish Star had an interesting little bit on how GWB when he was handed the offical *note* wrote on it 'Let Freedom Riegn!"

Now i'm sorry if this is too nay say etc but what a load of sh*t either the star made that bit up (or *heard* it) or GWB was told by his PR to do that to give him that glorfied stance held by many of the *classic* politicions (Churchills famous witt and Roosevelts speeches...)

mike65

from bbc.

Tehran to indict Saddam over war


Tehran says it has drawn its own list of charges against Saddam Hussein for crimes relating to the Iran-Iraq war.

The charges - to be submitted to the Iraqi court which is trying the ousted leader - include the 1980 attack on Iran and the use of chemical weapons.

Almost a million people died in the eight-year war between the two nations.

A spokesman said Iran had asked why alleged crimes against Iran were not among charges read out during Saddam Hussein's court appearance on Thursday.

"Iran will definitely file the complaint with the Iraqi court," a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said.

"One of the crimes of Saddam Hussein is the attack of Iran, the death of Iranians, the use of chemical weapons," Hamid Reza Asefi told reporters.

Documents

Mr Asefi said Tehran wanted to know why charges relating to the Iran-Iraq war had not been included in the original list read out to Saddam Hussein.


PRELIMINARY CHARGES
Anfal campaign against Kurds, late 1980s
Gassing Kurds in Halabja, 1988
Invasion of Kuwait , 1990
Crushing Kurdish and Shia rebellions after 1991 Gulf War
Killing political activists over 30 years
Massacring members of Kurdish Barzani tribe in 1980s
Killing religious leaders, 1974



"We have asked the Iraqis to explain why the attack on Iran did not feature among the charges against him, even though the judge said it would be addressed at a later date," Mr Asefi said.

Saddam Hussein appeared on Thursday in a court specially set up to try him and was told by an Iraqi judge that he would face charges relating to seven alleged crimes.

Iran said it would also hand over documents to the Iraqi court where Saddam Hussein is standing trial, although it was not made clear exactly when the complaint would be lodged.

Preliminary charges against Saddam Hussein cover the invasion of Kuwait in 1990, suppressing rebellions by Kurds and Shia after the 1991 Gulf war, ethnic cleansing of Kurds in 1987-88 and the gassing of Kurdish villagers in 1988.

Mike.

DublinWriter

As mentioned on RTE 6-1 last week, two of the conditions written into the handover are:

1) American companies can take 100% control of previous state-owned Iraqi companies

2) American companies will not be subject to tax on corporate profits by the Iraqi government

Now I think we see what Bush's true intention was.

Secondly, I think there will be a massive coup there within about two years. Rumsfeld's biggest mistake was demobbing 4 million Iraqi soliders. They haven't gone away you know.

This will be a show trial. He'll be killed and they'll basically martyr him. Same physcology as 1916. The leaders of the Easter Rising were spat at by Dubliners when they were lead out of the GPO.

Noam Chomskey famously said that if you applied the same rule of law used at the Nuremburg trials of the Nazi's and applied it to every American president since Roosevelt, then all would have been hung to a man for crimes against humanity.

BUMP!

If Hussein is acquited (and it has always got to be a possibility in a fair trial) does that mean that Mr. Bush himself will be subject to trial for an illegal invasion?

As the Americans will never allow that to happen, you do have to question whether the man can get a fair trial at all.
(Oh and I'm not defending Hussein he probably does deserve whatever happens. Probably!)

On another point, if Hussein is open to prosecution for indiscriminantly gassing the Kurds, does that mean that the Amerians could be brought to trial for their methods in Vietnam (carpet bombing, agent orange...)