Media: The Associated Press
Byline: By QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA
Date: 16 October 2006
BAGHDAD, Iraq_The brother of the top prosecutor in the second trial of
Saddam Hussein was shot dead in front of his wife at his home in the capital
Monday, according to a key official charged insuring no former members of
the Saddam regime hold positions of authority.
Imad al-Faroon died immediately after the shooting at his home in west
Baghdad, Dr. Ali al-Lami, head of the government De-Baathification
Committee, told The Associated Press.
Al-Faroon's brother is chief prosecutor Muqith al-Faroon, who is leading the
Saddam prosecution on charges of crimes against humanity in his alleged
killing of thousands of Kurds during the Iran-Iraq war.
There was no immediate word from law enforcement authorities about the
killing or who might have conducted the assassination.
Imad al-Faroon worked as a legal adviser to Ahmed Chalabi, the Iraqi exile
who returned to a prominent position in the early days after the U.S.-led
invasion toppled Saddam. Chalabi was believed to have had considerable
influence among American officials in the decision to go to war in Iraq, but
had a falling out with Washington after he was said to have given U.S.
intelligence codes to Iran.
Al-Faroon's killing adds to the troubles surrounding legal proceedings
against Saddam, who is being tried simultaneously in two cases in which he
faces charges of crimes against humanity and genocide and can face death by
hanging if convicted in either.
In a trial that began a year ago in connection with a government crackdown
against Shiites in 1982, the first chief judge stepped down amid charges of
political interference and failure to exercise enough authority over the
proceedings.
Three defense attorneys in that trial also were assassinated. The events
raised questions about the fairness of the proceedings and the wisdom of
holding the trial in Iraq.
The second Saddam trial, in which the former leader faces charges arising
from another government campaign in the 1980s against Iraq's Kurdish
population, has also been beset by controversy. Its first chief judge was
removed by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki after he told Saddam that he did
not think he was a dictator. He has since been replaced.
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