Appeals court: Saddam must die
Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein will die before February next year
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Tuesday, 26, Dec 2006 08:56
An Iraqi appeals court has upheld the guilty verdict and death sentence handed to former dictator Saddam Hussein last month.
The 69-year-old, who was ousted from power by US-led coalition forces in 2003, had been sentenced to death on November 5th for the massacre of 148 Shia men in the village of Dujail in 1982.
Following the sentence an appeal was automatically lodged but this has now been rejected, Mouwaffaq al-Rubaie, Iraq's national security adviser, said today.
According to Iraqi law Saddam must be hung within 30 days of the appeal's rejection. Only the failure of the country's president, Jalal Talabani, and his two vice-presidents could now prevent his death.
Mr Talabani is known to oppose the death penalty but, as he has previously allowed one of his vice-presidents to sign the order in his place, his moral scruples are not expected to pose a significant obstacle to Saddam's death.
Today's announcement means Saddam, who was captured by US forces three years ago this month, will not live to see February next year.
He had called on Iraqis to come together and "shake hands" days after receiving his death sentence, but his pleas appear to have made little difference as ongoing suicide attacks continue to engulf the troubled Middle Eastern country.