BAGHDAD (AFP) - Iraqi President Jalal Talabani said in remarks that he would not sign a death sentence against his ousted predecessor Saddam Hussein.
"I am a man of principles. I cannot forego my principles for the sake of my post. If there is a clash between the post and the principles, I will give up the post and keep the principles," Talabani said in a snippet aired in advance of the full interview broadcast.
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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051019/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_saddam_trialSaddam Goes on Trial for 1982 Massacre
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Saddam Hussein went on trial Wednesday for a massacre of his fellow Iraqis, turning immediately argumentative and refusing to recognize the authority of the court trying him two years after his capture for the killings of 150 Shiites.
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When the trial began, the 68-year-old ousted Iraqi leader — looking thin with a salt-and-pepper beard in a dark gray suit and open-collared white shirt — stood and asked the presiding judge: "Who are you? I want to know who you are."
"I preserve my constitutional rights as the president of Iraq," Saddam said. "I do not recognize the body that has authorized you and I don't recognize this aggression. What is based on injustice is unjust ... I do not respond to this so-called court, with all due respect."
The presiding judge, Rizgar Mohammed Amin, a Kurd, tried to get Saddam to formally identify himself, but Saddam refused. After several moments, he sat down.
Amin later read the charges against Saddam and his co-defendants, advising them they face possible execution if convicted.
DTop said:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051019/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_saddam_trialstood and asked the presiding judge: "Who are you? I want to know who you are."
"I preserve my constitutional rights as the president of Iraq," Saddam said. "I do not recognize the body that has authorized you and I don't recognize this aggression. What is based on injustice is unjust ... I do not respond to this so-called court, with all due respect."
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