Reply #7: Iraq Plans to Charge Saddam Before U.S. Hand Over [View All]

“I suspect that there will be an arrest warrant filed not only against Saddam but also against the other high-ranking officials before June 30,” said Salem Chalabi, the official in charge of setting up a tribunal to charge members of the ousted regime.
“We have been working quite hard in the last few days on that, believe me,” Chalabi said.

Chalabi said that he believes Iraqi authorities will have premises for holding Saddam if and when he is handed over by the Americans, who have been holding the former dictator at an undisclosed location in Iraq since he was arrested in December.

The International Committee of the Red Cross has indicated that under international law, Saddam must be charged or released after the formal end of the occupation since he was detained as a prisoner of war.

The six month-old Iraqi Special Tribunal which Chalabi is organising has struggled to put appropriate security safeguards in place.


Judges have refused to work for the tribunal after five potential candidates were killed since Saddam was toppled from power last year. Tens of millions of pounds have been spent on security alone.
Interim President Ghazi al-Yawer said that his government’s top priority would be regaining security in Iraq and rehabilitating Iraqi security institutions.

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http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=3069107

Iraq: Plans For Saddam Hussein's Trial Advance, But Many Details Uncertain

The U.S. cable television network CNN today quoted its sources at the Pentagon as saying they are not aware of any immediate plans for Washington to hand over prisoners to Baghdad. The unidentified U.S. military officials say they expect U.S. forces to continue to hold Saddam and thousands of other prisoners, even after the Iraqi government assumes sovereignty on 30 June.

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http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2004/06/2e4979fd-08f8-4284-bb35-dabfbbd63df6.html


BAGHDAD : The United States dashed the hopes of the new Iraqi government by refusing to set a date for the handover of Saddam Hussein, as an attack on a key oil pipeline virtually halted exports of the country's lifeline commodity

Foreign ministers from Muslim countries met in Istanbul to decide whether to support the new government, with the summit including discussions between officials from Iraq's six neighbours and Egypt.

After the meeting of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said the six countries wanted the "full" transfer of sovereignty to the new Iraqi government at the end of June, the handover date.

As well as Iraqi officials, representatives from Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey and Egypt attended the gathering.
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http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/afp_world/view/90160/1/.html