Iraqi official: Bad job by Saddam judge

BAGHDAD, Dec. 10 (UPI) -- Iraq's top national security official says that the judge in the trial of Saddam Hussein is letting the former dictator dominate the proceedings.

"The judge is doing a very bad job," National Security Adviser Mowaffak al-Rubaie told The Washington Times. "I think he should be replaced, yes, absolutely. People are very angry at his weakness in handling Saddam."

Judge Rizgar Mohammed Amin has been deferential to Saddam and co-defendants, especially his half-brother Barzan Ibrahim al-Hassan al-Tikriti, al-Rubaie said.

He also blamed the judge for allowing Saddam to make petty complaints about his treatment in front of witnesses who lost family members while Saddam was in power.