BAGHDAD, June 12 (UPI) -- Accusations that defense witnesses in ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's trial were beaten up touched off heated arguments at the court room Monday.
Judge Rauf Abdel Rahman, head of the special Higher Criminal court trying Saddam in the 1982 massacre in the Shiite city of Dujail, evicted Saddam's half-brother Barzan Takriti who is being tried in the same case, from the court room following a heated argument.
News that Takriti was beaten up by guards after leaving the court angered Saddam who asked for permission to leave the room. The former Iraqi leader said he did not wish "to see any Iraqi being humiliated for defending him."
The defense team charged that many defense witnesses have been beaten up by the court's guards after presenting their testimony in favor of Saddam. The accusations irritated judge Abdel Rahman who accused the defense lawyers of "provoking problems to influence the course of the trial."
Abdel Rahman then controlled himself and asked the defense lawyers to present a memo in that regard to the court to start an investigation.
The court which convened in its 33rd hearing in the case Monday heard the testimonies of six defense witnesses who were accused by the court's president of making false statements, a matter that provoked the defense team.
Defense lawyer Amin Deeb of Egypt charged that the defense witnesses were being terrorized and asked him whether the court could guarantee their safety if they testified.
Former U.S. secretary of justice Ramsay Clark, a member of Saddam's defense team, asked Abdel Rahman to stop the hearing and fix a new session to allow the defense committee to put matters in order. He also accused the court of not being neutral in its dealing with the defense and in hearing the various testimonies.
