Posted on 07/04/2004 10:14:31 PM PDT by MadIvan
AISHA al-Gaddafi, the daughter of the Libyan leader Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi, has joined the legal team representing Saddam Hussein in the tribunal set up to try the captured former Iraqi leader for war crimes.
The Libyan lawyer is the latest high profile person to join the team, which has so far been denied access to Saddam and entry to Iraq.
Mohammed al-Rashdan, one of the lawyers representing the former dictator, said: "Dr Aisha Gaddafi is henceforth part of our team as she requested. I have sent her a letter confirming her retention as part of the team."
Mr Rashdan said the team had renewed its request to be allowed entry into Iraq with both Iraqi legal and United States military authorities.
"We sent a formal request to the Iraqi bar association," he said.
Aisha Gaddafi is a popular figure in Libya and has been tipped as a possible successor to her father. After leaving al-Fatih University in Tripoli with a law degree she moved into tourism and has played a leading role attracting outside investment into her country.
The legal team was appointed by Saddam’s wife and daughters and includes lawyers from Jordan, Lebanon, Tunisia, Libya and Western countries such as the US, Britain, France and Belgium, among them the Scotland-based Italian, Giovanni di Stefano, and the English lawyer Tim Hughes.
As the task of putting together a case against Saddam gathered momentum in the wake of his appearance in court last week, Iran said yesterday it has prepared a complaint against the former Iraqi dictator for his 1980 invasion of Iran and for using chemical weapons against Iranians during the neighbouring nations’ eight-year war.
Tehran will file the documents with the Iraqi court where Saddam is standing trial, foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Asefi said. He did not say precisely when the complaint would be lodged.
"One of the crimes Saddam committed was his invasion of Iran and starting the war, killing many Iranian citizens and using chemical weapons in Halabja [within Iraq] and other places [in Iran] during the war," Mr Asefi said.
Iran expects Saddam will face judgment in an open trial for war crimes against it, Mr Asefi said.
"We have prepared the complaint and Iran will definitely file the complaint with the Iraqi court," he told a press conference. "We will hand over our documents to the court. We believe the court has to investigate Saddam’s crimes transparently and openly."
Iraq took legal custody of Saddam from the US on Wednesday, and the former dictator’s first court appearance on Thursday dominated television screens across the Middle East, where such images are unprecedented and prompted many calls for his execution.
The broad charges formally outlined against Saddam included the 1988 chemical weapons massacre of Kurds in Halabja, Iraq, the slaughter of Shiites during a 1991 uprising in southern Iraq and the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war apparently was not cited.
At this stage, however, Saddam was merely being informed of areas where he could face indictment and there is nothing to preclude Iraqi authorities from expanding or reducing the list of charges.
Mr Asefi said Iran’s top diplomat in Baghdad will ask Iraqi leaders why Saddam’s 1980 invasion of Iran did not receive the same priority as other crimes, such as the invasion of Kuwait a decade later.
"We have asked our charge d’affaires in Baghdad to seek explanation from the Iraqis on why the attack on Iran did not feature among the charges against him, even though the judge said the question would be addressed at a later date," Mr Asefi said.
Iranian leaders say the trial of 67-year-old Saddam should depict all the 30-year history of his rule, including US support for him during the Iran-Iraq war.
Saddam’s defence team has accused the interim Iraqi government and the court trying Saddam of being "illegitimate because they were appointed by the occupation".
Gaddafi's daughter to join Saddam defence..................
"defence"?
De-Fence?
Are they going to tear down a fence?
Just wondering...............................
The article is from the Scotsman, that's the British spelling. And the cheque is in the mail.
Oh.......................
I thought it was written by some Pittsburgh Steelers fans...................
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