Baghdad, Iraq – Defense attorneys in the trial of Saddam Hussein and seven co- defendants are expected to attend next week’s session despite an earlier threat to boycott the proceedings after two team members were assassinated, a U.S. official said Wednesday.
The official, briefing reporters on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case, said American and Iraqi authorities have urged defense lawyers to accept their offers of the “most robust security possible.”
As a result, he said, the Iraqi tribunal expects at least one attorney for each defendant – including Hussein’s personal counsel, Khalil al-Dulaimi – to appear at the Monday session. A total of 12 defense lawyers attended the Oct. 19 opening session.
Attempts by The Associated Press to reach al-Dulaimi on Wednesday were unsuccessful.
However, a senior official from the Iraqi High Tribunal said talks with defense lawyers about their security were ongoing.
He spoke on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media.
Fears for the safety of the defense lawyers rose after attorney Saadoun al-Janabi was abducted by masked gunmen the day after the opening session. His body was found the next day with bullets in his head.
On Nov. 8, defense lawyer Adel al-Zubeidi was killed in an ambush and a colleague, Thamir al-Khuzaie, was wounded. Al-Khuzaie fled and asked for asylum in Qatar.
In case the defense fails to show, the court will ask “standby” lawyers from the tribunal’s Defense Counsel Office to step in, the U.S. official said.
