Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
Voice of America is funded by the US Federal Government and content it
exclusively produces is in the public domain.

New Saddam Trial Judge Tries to Impose Order, Gets Chaos
--------------------------------------------------------

http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=10C4CE9:3919ACA Saddam walked out
after court's new presiding judge expelled Saddam's co-defendant and
half brother Barzan Ibrahim Hassan al-Tikriti





Deposed Iraqi president Saddam Hussein chastises the court after his
half brother, Barazan Ibrahim, was forcibly removed from the trial
held in Baghdad's heavily fortified Green Zone, Sunday Jan 29, 2006

The trial of Saddam Hussein quickly descended into chaos Sunday as a
new judge attempted to impose order on unruly outbursts by the ousted
Iraqi leader and his co-defendents.  The session was the first held by
the court in more than a month.  Ben Gilbert reports for VOA from
Baghdad.  At the start of Sunday's proceedings the Iraqi court's new
judge declared he would not tolerate any of the speeches or antics
that characterized previous sessions.  The judge, Raouf Abdul Rahman
was quickly challenged by one defendant, Barzan Al Tikriti, Saddam's
half brother and former director of intelligence.

Judge Rahman ordered Tikriti out of the room.  When he refused,
bailiffs dragged al Tikriti out of the court.   The defense team
rejected the move, and left the courtroom in protest.

When a team of court appointed defense attorneys were brought in,
Saddam stood up to protest…touching off an angry exchange between the
judge and the former dictator.

"I was ruling Iraq for 35 years, and I was ruling you," Saddam said to
the judge.  "Now you try to deal with me as defendant."

The judge then said, "I am judge and you are defendant."  As the
exchange grew more heated, Saddam pounded on the lectern and demanded
he be allowed to leave the courtroom too.

"Excuse me, I can't endure this court, an angry Saddam said. I have to
leave this court now…,"

The former Iraqi leader and another defendant were then escorted from
the court, and the trial continued with only four of the original
seven defendants in their chairs.

Before adjourning the trial until Wednesday, the court heard from a
witness who detailed her husband and father's alleged murder at the
hands of Saddam's regime in 1982, after an attempt on the former
dictator's life in the Iraqi town of Dujail.

The trial revolves around charges that Saddam ordered the murder of
142 residents of Dujail as retaliation for the assassination attempt.

The judge who presided over Sunday's session replaced the original
chief judge, Rizkar Mohammed Amin.  Judge Amin resigned earlier this
month, after government officials criticized his reluctance to bring
order to the courtroom.

Another judge on the court was barred from assuming Amin's position
after the Iraqi de-Baathification commission found he had been a
member of Saddam's former ruling Baath party.

Human Rights Watch says that having two of the original five judge
panel missing from the court casts serious doubts on the fairness of
the trial. Two defense lawyers have also been murdered since the trial
began.