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| Lawyers lodge Saddam death appeal | Lawyers lodge Saddam death appeal |
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| Lawyers for Saddam Hussein have lodged an appeal against the former Iraqi president's death sentence for crimes against humanity, court officials say. | Lawyers for Saddam Hussein have lodged an appeal against the former Iraqi president's death sentence for crimes against humanity, court officials say. |
| The appeal was lodged just two days before the expiry of a deadline and a month after the sentence was imposed. | The appeal was lodged just two days before the expiry of a deadline and a month after the sentence was imposed. |
| A panel of nine judges will review the verdict, which has been criticised by human rights groups as flawed. | A panel of nine judges will review the verdict, which has been criticised by human rights groups as flawed. |
| Saddam Hussein was sentenced to death over the killing of 148 people in the mainly Shia town of Dujail in 1982. | Saddam Hussein was sentenced to death over the killing of 148 people in the mainly Shia town of Dujail in 1982. |
| Judges also passed death sentences on Saddam's half-brother Barzan al-Tikriti and Iraq's former chief judge Awad Hamed al-Bandar. | Judges also passed death sentences on Saddam's half-brother Barzan al-Tikriti and Iraq's former chief judge Awad Hamed al-Bandar. |
| Violent aftermath | |
| Much of Iraq has seen an upsurge in sectarian violence in the weeks following the verdicts, prompting US and Iraqi leaders to consider a re-think of security policies within Iraq. |
| Clearly, what US forces are currently doing in Iraq is not working well enough or fast enough Donald RumsfeldFormer US Defence Secretary href="/1/hi/world/middle_east/6203212.stm" class="">Rumsfeld urged tactics shift The country's interior ministry has said that civilian deaths in November rose by 44% compared to the previous month. | |
| On Sunday, the US military confirmed that at least eight Iraqis, including two women, a child and five suspected insurgent fighters, died in an air strike near the western town of Falluja. | |
| Three US soldiers also died in two separate attacks on Saturday, one in the town of Taji, near Baghdad, and another two in Anbar province. | |
| The former US Defence Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, who resigned after US elections early last month, was reported on Sunday to have urged a "major adjustment" in Iraq policy just two days before he stepped down. | |
| In a memo leaked to the New York Times, Mr Rumsfeld offered suggestions for changing US policy in Iraq, saying: "Clearly, what US forces are currently doing in Iraq is not working well enough or fast enough." | |
| Trial criticised | Trial criticised |
| Chief prosecutor Jaafar al-Moussawi told the Reuters news agency that defence lawyers visited the court on Sunday to lodge appeals against all three sentences. | Chief prosecutor Jaafar al-Moussawi told the Reuters news agency that defence lawyers visited the court on Sunday to lodge appeals against all three sentences. |
| The three have an automatic right of appeal under Iraqi law. | The three have an automatic right of appeal under Iraqi law. |
| href="/1/hi/world/middle_east/4507568.stm" class="">Dujail trial timeline The nine appeal judges can amend any aspect of the verdict or sentence. | |
| However, Iraqi law states that if they uphold the initial verdict, the death sentence must be carried within 30 days. | However, Iraqi law states that if they uphold the initial verdict, the death sentence must be carried within 30 days. |
| Iraq's prime minister has said the sentence, if upheld, should be carried out as soon as possible, perhaps before the conclusion of the current trial. | Iraq's prime minister has said the sentence, if upheld, should be carried out as soon as possible, perhaps before the conclusion of the current trial. |
| The chief defence lawyer complained last month that his team had been unable to file appeal papers in the period immediately following the verdict. | The chief defence lawyer complained last month that his team had been unable to file appeal papers in the period immediately following the verdict. |
| Iraq's government and trial prosecutors have insisted the trial was fair, despite criticism of its administration and procedures by US-based Human Rights Watch. | Iraq's government and trial prosecutors have insisted the trial was fair, despite criticism of its administration and procedures by US-based Human Rights Watch. |
| The group said the trial suffered from "serious administrative, procedural and substantive legal defects", and called the death penalty a "cruel and inhumane punishment". | The group said the trial suffered from "serious administrative, procedural and substantive legal defects", and called the death penalty a "cruel and inhumane punishment". |
| Saddam Hussein is currently facing a second trial over the so-called Anfal campaign of 1988. | Saddam Hussein is currently facing a second trial over the so-called Anfal campaign of 1988. |
| He and six co-defendants are accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity over the killing of at least 100,000 Kurds in northern Iraq. | He and six co-defendants are accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity over the killing of at least 100,000 Kurds in northern Iraq. |