Saddam trial 'just weeks away'

THE trials of Saddam Hussein and his henchmen could begin within weeks, western legal experts said yesterday, as the first concrete details emerged of how the tribunals into crimes committed under the ousted Iraqi regime would be held.

The high-security court, which could start hearing full trials "within months", will have its proceedings led by an Iraqi-style panel of five examining judges rather than use the adversarial system favoured by British and American courts.

Western advisers said this kind of set-up would deprive Saddam of the confrontational platform offered to the likes of Slobodan Milosevic at the war crimes tribunals in The Hague.

It is hoped to limit the former dictator’s ability to use the court for political grandstanding, although human rights groups fear it could also prevent him raising awkward questions about western governments’ involvement in his regime.

"The trial chamber will be very different from the adversarial system that we are familiar with in the West," one western legal official based in Baghdad said yesterday.

The official also set out the first details of the schedule for the trials, which, until now, had been largely a matter of speculation.

Within a few weeks, a series of special "referral hearings" are likely to begin, in which vast piles of documents outlining the cases against accused individuals are likely to be presented formally to the judges for examination.

Proper trials could then begin within months - perhaps even weeks - once the examination process is complete, officials said.

"It is discretionary as to how long there is between the referral and the time of trial, but in Iraq it is traditionally a very short time, unlike in the US where it is often six to eight months," said one.

The first defendants to have their cases heard are likely to be drawn from a so-called "dirty dozen" of senior regime figures - including Saddam - who initially appeared before the special tribunal last July.

Although there has been no official confirmation from the tribunal, it is thought that the first two cases will be those of Saddam’s cousin Ali Hassan al-Majid - known as Chemical Ali for his alleged gassing of Iraqi Kurds - and the ousted Iraqi leader’s half-brother Watban al-Tikriti, a former intelligence chief. Both are expected to face a range of charges involving crimes against humanity.

The proceedings are being modelled on the existing Iraqi legal system, which is inquisitorial, like those in countries such as France and Italy.

Examining judges question witnesses and the accused in sessions themselves and then draw their conclusions, rather than being presented with two versions of the evidence from prosecution and defence lawyers.

A total of 25 judges have been trained to hear the cases; they are part of a staff of 400 on the war crimes tribunal.

The court is expected to sit in a building in Baghdad’s heavily-guarded Green Zone, with proceedings televised and translated into English and French.

A witness protection scheme is also planned which will allow people to give evidence from behind screens if needs be.