IRAQ: Iraqis give mixed reactions to Saddam's death sentence

Iraqi Shi'ites in different parts of Iraq poured onto the streets on Monday (November 6), dancing and chanting for joy at the fate of the man who oppressed them for three decades. On Sunday (November 5) an Iraqi court sentenced a shaken but defiant Saddam Hussein to hang for crimes against humanity, sparking joy from the Shi'ites he oppressed and resentment among his fellow Sunnis across Iraq's violent sectarian divide. In the town of Mahmoudiya, south of Baghdad, nearly one hundred people took to the streets, dancing and waving flags. His half-brother, Barzan al-Tikriti, and former judge Awad al-Bander were also sentenced to death for killing, torturing and deporting hundreds of people from the Shi'ite town of Dujail after Shi'ite gunmen tried to kill Saddam there in 1982. Mahmoudiya, about 30 km (20 miles) south of Baghdad, has a mixed Shi'ite and Sunni population and remains the scene of frequent bombings and mortar attacks. Meanwhile, around 50 people danced in the streets of the holy Shi'ite city of Kerbala in celebration of the court's decision. Cheering people waved flags and carried pictures of Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, leader of the the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq. However, streets at Saddam's hometown of Tikrit were deserted on Monday (November 6) as curfew continued for the second day. Iraqi soldiers could be seen manning checkpoints at the main streets of Tikrit town and police vehicles took positions near the governor's office and government buildings in the town. Members of the Iraqi security forces in the town, a former powerbase of Saddam's regime, described the sentence as unfair, calling for humanitarian organisations to interfere. However, security forces said that they would work to keep full control of the town and prevent insurgent attacks until the curfew is lifted. Curfew in Baghdad and other areas in Iraq to prevent an insurgent backlash against the court ruling on Saddam Hussein is expected to be lifted on Tuesday (November 7), the prime minister Nouri Al Maliki's office said on Monday (November 6). It said vehicles will be allowed back in the streets of the capital at 6 a.m. (0300 GMT). Pedestrians are free to travel immediately in Baghdad. Saddam admitted ordering the execution of 148 men, calling it justified in wartime against allies of Shi'ite Iran. International human rights groups, which had called for the case to be heard abroad, said the killing of three defence lawyers, the resignation of a judge over political interference and flaws in evidence meant that it fell short of a fair trial. But U.S. and Iraqi officials hailed the year-long process as proof of the independence of Iraq's judiciary and a new landmark in the development of international war crimes law since Nazi leaders were tried, and some hanged, at Nuremberg 60 years ago. Meanwhile, around one thousand people marched north of Baghdad on Monday (November 6) to protest the Iraqi court's decision to sentence former President Saddam Hussein to death by hanging. Carrying pictures of Saddam and chanting slogans showing love and loyalty to the Iraqi former leader, protesters marched through Samarra, 60 miles north of Baghdad, denouncing the verdict against Saddam . Police vehicles, carrying pictures of Saddam and Iraqi flags also took part in the demonstration.

ITN Source | November 7, 2006

Tags:. .protesters. .population. .joy. .deserted. .resignation