Trials of Saddam aides to start, with Chemical Ali first up

BAGHDAD - War crimes trials against senior lieutenants of Saddam Hussein will start in Baghdad next week, says the interim Iraqi Prime Minister, Iyad Allawi.

Ali Hassan al-Majid, better known as "Chemical Ali", will be the first to be tried, Defence Minister Hazim al-Shalaan said last night.

The trial could start next week and would definitely take place by mid-January, he said.

The announcement of trials surprised other members of the Government, who say little preparatory work has been done.

Allawi told the Interim National Council: "I can now tell you clearly and precisely that, God willing, next week the trials of the symbols of the former regime will start, one by one so that justice can take its course in Iraq."

The announcement may be part of Allawi's election campaign for the poll on January 30.

Salem Chalabi, who was purged in September as director of the Special Tribunal in charge of the prosecutions, accused Allawi of pushing for show trials before the election.

An ill-prepared trial could backfire. Government leaders say evidence has yet to be examined.

"The prosecution team, the defence counsel, the investigative judges, the documents are not ready," said National Security Adviser Mouwafak al-Rubaie last week.

"It will take time. If you want to get it right, it will take time."

A trial of leading Baathists is likely to be divisive since Iraqi Kurds, victims of torture and massacre under the former regime, would like to see Saddam and his chief lieutenants executed. Some, but not all, Shiite Arabs feel the same way.

The Sunni, which provided the core of the Baath Party, may resent the trials as a sign that their community is being singled out for persecution.

Saddam's Jordan-based lawyer, Ziad al-Kasawneh, expressed doubt that the trials would start next week.

"Mr Allawi is dreaming," he said. "He cannot make such a bold announcement without consulting with his boss, President Bush."

The US military has acknowledged that eight out of 11 of Saddam's senior aides briefly went on hunger strike over the weekend demanding a visit by the International Committee of the Red Cross. They are held at the US base near the airport.

The only appearance of Saddam and his lieutenants before the Special Tribunal in July backfired when he attacked the legitimacy of the court.

The number of US troops is rising from 138,000 to 150,000 for the poll. But military commander General Richard Myers admitted that the extra forces would stay after the election. Their withdrawal "will be determined by events on the ground".

- INDEPENDENT, additional reporting Reuters