Trial date set for Saddam
2005-09-04 10:02
Amman- Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and seven of his former henchmen will go on trial on October 19 in connection with the massacre of 143 people in the village of Dujail, government spokesperson's Laith Kubba announced Sunday.
Meanwhile the Hussein family has reorganised the former dictator's defence team after sacking foreign lawyers and announced plans to launch a media campaign ahead of his expected trial in October.
Under measures adopted by Hussein's eldest daughter Raghad, he will be assigned a new legal committee of international lawyers headed by Iraqi lawyer Khalil Dulaimi, with the deposed leader having the final say on the team.
The reorganisation was announced in a statement received by AFP on Sunday and followed an Iraqi official's declaration last week that Saddam will go on trial in the second half of October after a referendum on the constitution.
Saddam's previous legal team, a collection of about 1 500 Arab and foreign lawyers, was disbanded last month amid an apparent row over conflicting advice and an abundance of public declarations about the case.
- AFP