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BAGHDAD - Former commanders of Saddam Hussein's military went on trial in Baghdad yesterday for their role in crushing a Shiite rebellion in southern Iraq at the end of the 1991 Gulf War in which tens of thousands were killed.
Standing alongside the military officers were Saddam's former defence minister at the time and his personal secretary. The most high profile of the 15 defendants is Saddam's cousin, Ali Hassan al-Majeed, known as "Chemical Ali".
The chief judge, Mohammed Oreibi al-Khalifa, told the men they were charged with crimes against humanity. The court has said the charges are "for engaging in widespread or systematic attacks against a civilian population".
The rebellion, and a simultaneous one in Kurdish areas in northern Iraq, erupted in early March 1991 after a US-led coalition routed Saddam's army in Kuwait.
The rebels expected US forces to come to their aid. Then US President George Bush senior had called on the Iraqi people and the military to oust Saddam.
But Saddam was given a free hand to launch a counterattack with tanks and helicopters.
- Reuters
