Saddam, co-defendants forced to attend latest session of trial

(13 Feb 2006) ++PLEASE NOTE, AP TELEVISION NEWS DOES NOT HAVE CONTROL OF THE LIVE POOL FEED BEING DELIVERED FROM BAGHDAD, WHICH OPERATES WITH A 20 MINUTE DELAY. THIS PACKAGE HAS BEEN EDITED FROM THAT LIVE SIGNAL.++ 1. Wide of trial's new chief judge, Raouf Abdel-Rahman 2. Wide of empty chairs 3. Saddam shouting, UPSOUND: (Arabic) "Down with the agents. Down with Bush. Long live the nation, long live the nation!" 4. Mid shot of Raouf Abdel-Rahman 5. Mid shot of co-defendant (soundbite begins) 6. SOUNDBITE: (Arabic) Barzan Ibrahim, co-defendant: "Long live Iraq (noise). Long live the people of Iraq!" 7. Raouf Abdel-Rahman, UPSOUND: (Arabic) "Sit down" 8. SOUNDBITE: (Arabic) Barzan Ibrahim, co-defendant: "Shame and disgrace on you Raouf!" 9. Close up of court sign, UPSOUND: (Arabic) Saddam "Shame and disgrace on you Raouf!" 10. Mid shot of judge 11. SOUNDBITE: (Arabic) Saddam, co-defendant: "Shame and disgrace on you Raouf!" 12. Wide of court 13. Mid shot of judge, UPSOUND of judge: " Let the accused be reassured that their legal rights are maintained." 14. SOUNDBITE: (Arabic) Barzan Ibrahim, co-defendant: " We refuse to attend the court in the absence of our lawyers. What kind of justice is this when you bring us here by force?" 15. Mid shot of judge (soundbite continues) 16. Mid shot of Barzan (soundbite continues) 17. Saddam (soundbite ends) 18. Barzan struggles with security 19. Judge 20. Saddam 21. Judge 22. Mid shot of judges 23. Mid shot of Barzan seated on the floor, with his back to judge 24. Mid shot of backs of co-defendants, pan to Barzan seated with back judge 25. Tilt down of Barzan 26. Close up of Saddam 27. Close up of Barzan 28. Wide of defendants and judges in court STORYLINE Saddam Hussein was forced to attend his trial on Monday, looking haggard and wearing a robe rather than his usual crisp suit as he shouted, "Down with Bush." His top co-defendant struggled with guards bringing him in and sat on the floor, his back to the judge, for much of the session. After a stormy start to the session, prosecutors put on the stand a member of Saddam's regime for the first time and produced documents trying to link the former Iraqi leader directly to torture and executions that allegedly took place in a 1982 crackdown in the Shiite town of Dujail. But the witness, Ahmed Hussein Khudayer al-Samarrai - the head of Saddam's presidential office from 1984-1991 and then again from 1995 until the fall of the regime in April 2003 - insisted he knew nothing about the events in Dujail. "I am not fit to be a witness in this case," al-Samarrai told the court, bringing a smile from Saddam. Saddam complained to the court that he was being forced to attend. The eight defendants boycotted the past sessions, refusing to work with court-appointed defence attorneys named after their own defence team walked out in protest. Saddam shouted, "Down with the agents. Down with Bush. Long live the nation!" referring to the American president, as he entered the room. He wore a blue galabeya - a traditional Arab robe - and a black jacket, a stark contrast to the tailored black suits he has worn to past sessions. Saddam's wants the replacement of the trial's new chief judge, Raouf Abdel-Rahman, a Kurd, who took over last month after his predecessor stepped down amid criticism over his handling of the trial. The defence claims that Abdel-Rahman is unfit to try the case because he was sentenced to life in absentia in the 1970s for anti-state activity. Saddam became president in 1979, but was Iraq's most powerful man for several years before that. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives ​​ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/6ef407db71282847fc8ee37cbe9a9f6e

Category