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Iraq

Iraq says ISIS demolishes ruins to cover up looting operations

2015-05-13

Baghdad -- The videos of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants destroying ancient artifacts in Iraq’s museums and blowing up 3,000-year-old temples are chilling enough, but one of Iraq’s top antiquities officials is now saying the destruction is a cover for an even more sinister activity—the systematic looting of Iraq’s cultural heritage. In the videos that appeared in April, militants can be seen taking sledge hammers to the iconic winged-bulls of Assyria and sawing apart floral reliefs in the palace of Ashurnasirpal II in Nimrud before the entire site is destroyed with explosives. But according to Qais Hussein Rashid, head of Iraq’s State Board for Antiquities and Heritage, that was just the final step in a deeper game. “According to our sources, the [ISIS] started days before destroying this site by digging in this area, mainly the palace,” he told The Associated Press from his office next to Iraq’s National Museum—itself a target of looting after the 2003 US-led invasion that ousted Saddam Hussein. “We think that they first started digging around these areas to get the artifacts, then they started demolishing them as a cover up.”

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Iraq

Saddam half-brothers to be executed within a month

2011-07-16

Hang 'em high. BAGHDAD — Iraq will execute two of Saddam Hussein’s half-brothers within a month along with three other former regime figures, an official said on Friday after the five were handed over by the US military. “They (the five officials) will be executed within one month.,” said justice ministry spokesman Haidar al-Saadi. “They include Watban Ibrahim Hassan and Sabawi Ibrahim al-Tikriti,” two half-brothers of the former dictator. Also among the group handed over and slated to be executed were former defence minister Sultan Hashem Ahmed and ex-generals Hussein Rashid al-Tikriti and Aziz Saleh Numan. The five were sentenced to death in different trials from 2007 to 2011. “Justice Minister Hassan al-Shammari visited with the presidency council earlier this week and they agreed not to delay the ratification of their condemnation to death,” Saadi said. “We believe that the council will sign the documents within days and they will be executed within one month.” Under Iraqi law, all death sentences must be formally approved by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, or by either of his two vice presidents. Watban Ibrahim Hassan, a former interior minister, was sentenced to death in March 2009 for his involvement in the 1992 execution of 42 merchants accused of food price speculation. He is the only senior Saddam-era official to have publicly apologised for wrongs committed by the dictator’s Baath party. Sabawi Ibrahim al-Tikriti, a former chief of Saddam’s intelligence service, was condemned to death in the same trial. Former defence minister Ahmed and ex-general Tikriti were sentenced to death in June 2007 in connection with the repression of Iraq’s Kurds in the 1987-88 Anfal campaign in which 180,000 people died. Numan was given his death sentence last month over the violent suppression of an uprising of Shiite Muslims in south Iraq following the 1991 Gulf War. So far, Saddam and four of his top officials have been executed since the 2003 invasion.

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Iraq

Iraq to execute Saddam's half-brothers

2011-07-16

[Emirates 24/7] Iraq will execute two of Saddam Hussein's half-brothers within a month along with three other former regime officials, an official said on Friday, a day after the five were handed over by the US military. The group, transferred to Iraqi custody on Thursday morning, were among 206 high-value detainees still being held by American forces ahead of a US military pullout due by the end of the year. "We received the final 206 Iraqi prisoners being held by US forces, including five bigwigs from the former regime," said justice ministry front man Haidar al-Saadi. "They (the five officials) will be executed within one month. They include Watban Ibrahim Hassan and Sabawi Ibrahim al-Tikriti," two half-brothers of the late dictator. Also among the group handed over and slated to be executed are former defence minister Sultan Hashem Ahmed and ex-generals Hussein Rashid al-Tikriti and Aziz Saleh Numan. The five have been sentenced to death in different trials. "Justice Minister Hassan al-Shammari visited with the presidency council earlier this week and they agreed not to delay the ratification of their condemnation to death," he said. "We believe that the council will sign the documents within days and they will be executed within one month." Under Iraqi law, all death sentences must be formally approved by Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, or by either of his two vice presidents. The 206 prisoners transferred were being held by US forces at a detention facility on Storied Baghdad ...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate... 's outskirts, formerly known as Camp Cropper. Though the site was handed over to Iraq on July 15, 2010, American soldiers were charged with holding the group of high-value detainees. Saadi said that of the larger group, the paperwork for 10 detainees had not yet been completed. Saddam, who was deposed in a 2003 US-led invasion, himself spent three years in Camp Cropper until his execution on December 2006. Watban Ibrahim Hassan, a former interior minister, was sentenced to death in March 2009 for his involvement in the 1992 execution of 42 merchants accused of food-price speculation. He is the only senior Saddam-era official to have publicly apologised for wrongs committed by the dictator's Baath Party. Sabawi Ibrahim al-Tikriti, a former chief of Saddam's intelligence service, was condemned to death in the same trial. Ahmed and Hussein Rashid al-Tikriti were sentenced to death in June 2007 in connection with the repression of Iraq's Kurds in the 1987-88 Anfal campaign in which 180,000 died. Numan was handed down his death sentence last month over the violent suppression of an uprising of Shiite Mohammedans in south Iraq following the 1991 Gulf War.

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Iraq

Iraq to disband court that tried Saddam

2011-05-05

BAGHDAD — The Iraqi government said Wednesday it will disband the tribunal that condemned Saddam Hussein and other top regime officials to death and was heavily criticized by human rights groups. "Our work here is done, citizens..." The announcement could help alleviate tension between the Shiite-led government and Iraq’s Sunni community, which has long felt unfairly targeted by the Iraqi High Criminal Tribunal and has demanded its closure in the interests of national reconciliation. The statement only said that the Cabinet approved a draft law to disband the court and that it has been sent to parliament, without giving any further details. The court spokesman, Raid Juhi, told The Associated Press that the decision was made because the court had finished its cases. The proposed law sets June 30 as a deadline to settle a few final minor cases, he added. A number of international human rights organizations and Iraqi Sunni politicians have been questioning whether the proceedings of the tribunal, which tried and sentenced dozens of former officials, complied with international standards for fairness. The first among the cases it handled was against Saddam who was hanged in late 2006 for his role in the deaths of more than 140 Shiite Muslims following an 1982 attempt on his life. It also tried and sent to the gallows Hussein’s cousin Ali Hassan al-Majid who gained his nickname “Chemical Ali” for ordering the use of mustard gas and nerve agents against the Kurds in response to their collaboration with the Iranians during the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq War. Saddam’s half brother and former intelligence chief Barzan Ibrahim, former vice president Taha Yassin Ramadan and former head of Iraq’s revolutionary court Awad Hamid al-Bandar were also all sentenced to death and executed. The court also tried and convicted 74-year-old Tariq Aziz, the only Christian in Saddam’s inner circle, for his role in the crackdown on the Shiite political parties now dominating Iraq’s politics. Aziz faces a death sentence for his conviction in that case but it has yet to be implemented. Two other Saddam-era officials have also been convicted and sentenced to death. But the cases of Sultan Hashim Ahmad al-Tai, the former defense minister who led the Iraqi delegation at the cease-fire talks that ended the 1991 Gulf War, and Hussein Rashid Mohammed, a former deputy director of operations for the Iraqi armed forces, have angered Iraq’s Sunni population who believe the sentences are too harsh.

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Iraq

US hands over Tariq Aziz, other detainees: Iraq

2010-07-15

The US has handed over 55 former members of Saddam Hussein's inner circle, including the longtime international face of the regime, Tariq Aziz, Iraq's deputy justice minister said Wednesday. The announcement comes a day before US authorities are to transfer authority of Camp Cropper, the last American-run detention facility to the Iraqi government. Iraq's deputy justice minister Busho Ibrahim told that the handover has taken place over the last three days, starting on Monday. "As of today, we have received 55 former regime officials, the main one is Tariq Aziz, and the others are the oil and culture ministers," he said, adding that they have also received Saddam's former secretary Abed Hmoud, as well as the former education and trade ministers in Saddam's regime. The US military confirmed that some detainees had been handed over but did not provide identities. Hussein Rashid Mohammed, former deputy operations director of the Iraqi military, and Sultan Hashim al-Taie, the former defense minister, were not handed over, the Iraqi official said. As of Thursday, Iraqi security officials will control Camp Cropper, and the US will hand over roughly 1,600 Iraqi prisoners currently in American custody. However, US military officials have said previously that about 200 prisoners will remain in American custody at the request of Iraqi officials. The handover is part of US plans to draw down to 50,000 troops by the end of August in anticipation of all American forces leaving by the end of next year. Aziz, the only Christian in Saddam's mainly Sunni regime, became internationally known as the dictator's defender and a fierce American critic as foreign minister after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, which led to the Gulf War, and later as a deputy prime minister who frequently traveled abroad on diplomatic missions.

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Iraq

Iraq urges execution of Saddam-era officials

2009-03-18

BAGHDAD - The Iraqi government renewed its call on Tuesday for the executions of officials in the ousted regime of Saddam Hussein to go ahead despite the objections of Iraq’s president and vice president. “The cabinet appeals to the presidency council to approve the decisions issued by the Iraqi High Tribunal against criminals that were sentenced to death,” government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said in a statement. We couldn't agree more! Saddam’s cousin Ali Hassan al-Majeed, former Defence Minister Sultan Hashem and former army commander Hussein Rashid Muhammed have all been sentenced to death for their role in the Anfal military campaign against ethnic Kurds in 1988. Majeed has two other death sentences, one for crushing a 1991 Shi’ite revolt and another for killing and displacing Shi’ite Muslims in 1999. Keep passing the death sentences and make sure that at least two or three are carried out. Majeed’s initial death sentence in 2007 was widely cheered, but Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, and Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi, a Sunni Arab, opposed Hashem and Muhammed’s execution, arguing the military men were following orders. Good Germans they were ... That put Talabani and Hashemi at odds with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, a Shi’ite, whose co-religionists suffered terribly under Saddam’s minority Sunni Arab rule. Although Talabani and Hashemi have no objections to the execution of Majeed, the legal wrangle has held up the execution of all three sentenced for the Anfal campaign. They were due to have gone to the gallows within days of an Iraqi appeals court upholding their death sentences in September 2007.

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Iraq

Citizens agree on hanging Chemical Ali, differ on rest of defendants

2008-12-07

Aswat al-Iraq: A number of citizens from Basra, Tikrit, and Missan expressed belief that sentences issued by the Supreme Criminal Court against suspects in the 1991 al-Intifada al-Shaabaniya case are 'just', others considered them as 'political', and most of them agreed that Ali Hassan al-Majid, otherwise known as Chemical Ali, deserves the death sentence. "The death sentence issued against Ali Hassan al-Majid is considered as a strong slap on the face of those who perpetrated crimes against the Iraqi people. He was like Hitler and this is a just sentence," Mustafa Karim, a Basrian citizen, told Aswat al-Iraq. Another citizen from Basra, Ali Salman, agreed with Karim, saying "it was a just sentence for what al-Majid perpetrated against hundreds of Iraqi people. Everyone watched him on television beating and killing citizens during al-Intifada." For his part, Abdullah al-Jasem, retired brigadier from Tikrit, told Aswat al-Iraq, "the sentences have political aim to retaliate from the former army leaders." Hussein al-Ubeid, a professor at the Tikrit University, said "we expect the sentences, however some sentences were surprise." He pointed out that al-Tikriti deserves to die for killing hundreds of Iraqis. "Most of the suspects are military officers who implement orders and it is not logic to convict them for crimes made by politicians," he explained. Udai Abdul Khaleq, a teacher from Missan, told Aswat al-Iraq "television helped citizens to follow the case," noting that the case proved that Chemical Ali was the mastermind if several violations and killing operations against innocent Iraqis. "He deserves the life sentence," he asserted. "This was a day of justice," Abbas Fakher from Missan said. "Those who killed innocent people must be killed," Fakher underlined. "It is a day of joy and victory for all Iraqis," he pointed out. Last Tuesday, the Supreme Criminal Court sentenced to death Ali Hassan al-Majid, otherwise known as Chemical Ali; and Abdul Ghani Abdul Ghafour, a former Baath Party official, after found guilty in the 1991 al-Intifada al-Shaabaniya case. Life sentences were handed down against Ibrahim Abdelsattar Mohammed; Iyad Fatieh al-Rawi, former chief of staff and a Republican Guard commander; Hussein Rashid al-Tikriti, former assistant chief of staff; and Saber Abdul-Aziz al-Dori, the former chief of military intelligence. Other defendants in the case are Abad Hamid Mahmud, Saddam's personal secretary; Sabaawi Ibrahim al-Hassan, former President Saddam Hussein's half brother; Iyad Taha Shehab, a former intelligence chief; Latif Mahal Hamoud, former Basra governor; Walied Hamid Tawfiq al-Naseri; Sufyan Maher al-Tikriti, a former Republican Guard commander; Saadi Taama Abbas, the former minister of defense; Saber Abdul-Aziz al-Dori, the former chief of military intelligence; and Qays Abdul Razzaq Mohammed al-Adhami, the commander of the Republican Guard Hamourabi forces. The 1991 incidents, known in Arabic as the al-Intifada al-Shaabaniya, or the Shaaban uprising, were a series of rebellions in southern and northern Iraq in the aftermath of the Gulf War. The revolts in the predominantly Shiite cities of Basra and al-Nassiriya broke out in March 1991, sparked by demoralized Iraqi army troops returning from Iraq's defeat in the Gulf War. Another uprising in the Kurdish areas of northern Iraq broke out shortly thereafter. Although they represented a serious threat to his regime, former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was able to suppress the rebellions with massive force and maintain power, as the expected United States intervention never materialized. The uprisings were eventually crushed by the Iraqi Republican Guard, which was followed by mass reprisals and intensified forced relocations. In few weeks, tens of thousands of civilians were allegedly killed.

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Iraq

Uprising court dismisses defendant, another apologizes to victims' families

2008-07-01

(VOI) – Iraq's Supreme Criminal Court undertaking the 1991 Shaaban Uprising in Basra and Missan on Monday dismissed defendant Abdul Ghani al-Ani from the courtroom, after a debate between the two sides. Defendant Iyad Shehab, a former high ranking intelligence member, apologized to those whom he called "the families of innocent victims," who were executed during the events of the uprising. The court session was held today, headed by Justice Mohammed Uraiby, and was attended by the case's 15 defendants. At the beginning of today's session, Justice Uraiby dismissed defendant Abdul Ghani Abdul Ghafour al-Ani, former member of Iraq's dissolved Baath party command – Basra branch, due to a debate between them. The judge then requested that a defense attorney leave the courtroom, to hear a defendant's testimony. The court committee was left alone in the courtroom with defendant Iyad Taha Shehab, the former security director of the Iraqi secret services (the Mukhabarat – under Saddam Hussein), during the uprising's events. At the beginning of his testimony, Shehab apologized to "innocent victims' families," for being a defendant in this case. "The Mukhabarat's mission was to follow up foreign people and diplomatic delegations in Iraq," he said. "The secrete services consisted of three divisions; individuals' security, information security, and institution's security," he added. "The Mukhabarat had absolutely no relation with average Iraqis, and only Iraqis who deal with foreign embassies and so on were related to the secrete services' field," he explained. "My job was to follow up on the Mukhabarat's personnel themselves," he asserted. Justice Uraiby then addressed a group of questions to defendant Shehab, regarding his carreer during the uprising. He also showed a group of documents that were submitted by the prosecutor to prove Shehab's involvement in the uprising's events. The prime defendant in this case is Ali Hassan al-Majid, alias Chemical Ali, who was condemned to death on charges of crimes against humanity in the al-Anfal case, in his capacity as former commander of the Southern Zone, based in Basra, and member of the dissolved Revolutionary Command Council. Other defendants include Sultan Hashim, the former Iraqi defense minister; Hussein Rashid al-Tikriti, former assistant chief of staff; Saber Abdul-Aziz al-Dori, the former chief of military intelligence; Sabaawi Ibrahim al-Hassan, former President Saddam Hussein's half brother; Abad Hamid Mahmud, Saddam's personal secretary; Abdul Ghani Abdul Ghafour, a former Baath Party official; Saadi Taama Abbas, the former minister of defense; Iyad Fatieh al-Rawi, former chief of staff and a Republican Guard commander; Latif Mahal Hamoud, former Basra governor; Sufyan Maher al-Tikriti, also a former Republican Guard commander; Iyad Taha Shehab, a former intelligence chief and Walied Hamid Tawfiq al-Naseri.

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Iraq

Chemical Ali in hospital after hunger strike

2008-04-20

ALI Hassan al-Majid, the Saddam Hussein henchman better known as Chemical Ali who is on death row for genocide, has been admitted to hospital after a three-day hunger strike, lawyer Badie Aref said in Jordan today. Majid "was taken to hospital on Saturday after his health deteriorated as a result of the hunger strike," said the lawyer, who represents another leading figure in Saddam's regime, deputy prime minister Tareq Aziz. "He is in a serious health situation... he went on the strike to protest his prison conditions." Mr Badie did not elaborate. Majid was sentenced to death for genocide last June, along with former defence minister Sultan Hashim al-Tai and former armed forces deputy chief of operations Hussein Rashid al-Tikriti. The three were convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity for overseeing a brutal military campaign against Kurdish civilians in 1988 known as Anfal, or Spoils, that left 180,000 people dead. Their executions have been delayed by legal wranglings.

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Iraq

Iraq wants to execute Saddam aides together

2008-03-19

BAGHDAD - The Iraqi government said on Tuesday it wanted to execute together three former aides of Saddam Hussein, including “Chemical Ali,” who face the gallows for a genocidal campaign against Kurds. Ali Hassan al-Majid, widely known as Chemical Ali, was sentenced to death last June for genocide, along with former defence minister Sultan Hashim al-Tai and Hussein Rashid al-Tikriti>Hussein Rashid al-Tikriti, once armed forces deputy chief of operations. The three were convicted of overseeing a brutal military campaign known as Anfal against Kurdish villagers in 1988 that left 180,000 people dead, and of war crimes and crimes against humanity. “The Iraqi cabinet calls for the three Saddam aides to be executed together at one time in order to implement the sentence issued by the court against them,” a cabinet statement said. The executions have been delayed by legal wranglings. On February 29, Iraq’s three-member presidency endorsed the execution of Majid, but gave no information about the fate of the other two men. Under Iraqi law the three men should have been executed by October 4 last year, 30 days after the sentences were upheld by the Supreme Court. But Iraq decided to postpone them until after the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, because of the outcry over Saddam’s hanging during another Muslim holiday in December 2006. The hangings were further put off because President Jalal Talabani and his Sunni deputy, Tareq al-Hashemi, refused to sign the three execution orders. The three men are in the custody of the US military, which has refused to hand them over to the Iraqi authorities unless the legal hitches are resolved. A source close to the Iraqi High Tribunal, which sentenced the three, said the executions were delayed because the US authorities were under pressure from Hashemi. “Hashemi is the obstacle in the executions,” he said, adding that the Sunni leader and the US authorities believe the three executions could trigger fresh chaos in the country. “We don’t understand how it can trigger chaos. None of them is like Saddam.” He said Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki was determined to carry out the hangings. “The prime minister just wants to implement the sentences as per law." He said the legal advisors of the government said it no longer had to adhere to the 30 days period. “That deadline was only for the first time. We have already passed that deadline,” he added.

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Iraq

American Army in Iraq ready to hand over convict to Iraqi govt.

2008-03-06

(KUNA) -- The American Army declared on Wednesday that it would hand over to the Iraqi Government the notorious convict, Ali Hassan Al-Majid, also widely known as "Chemical Ali" for spearheading massacres against Iraqi kurds with chemical agents. The official spokesman of the Multi-National Force said at a news conference that the Iraqi Government has not requested the handover of the convict for execution, in line with a recent approval of the presidency of a court death sentence. On March 1, Iraqi Vice-President Tareq al-Hashimi said the Iraqi Presidency had unanimously approved the execution of Ali Hassan Al-Majid, better known as Chemical Ali. But it has decided to delay the hanging of other defendants Sultan Hashim and Hussein Rashid, al-Hahimi Office said in a release. Chemical Ali was condemned to death for genocide charges for killing 100, 000 people during the 1988 Anfal campaign against the Kurds in northern Iraq.

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Iraq

'Chemical Ali' has squirmed enough execution OK'd in Iraq

2008-02-29

Iraq's presidential council has endorsed the execution within a month of Saddam Hussein's cousin, known as "Chemical Ali," for his role in the 1980s scorched-earth campaign against Kurds, officials said Friday. But it spared the life of two other officials amid Sunni protests that they were only following orders. The approval by Iraq's President Jalal Talabani and two vice presidents was the final step clearing the way for Ali Hassan al-Majid's execution by hanging. It could now be carried out at any time, a government adviser and a prosecutor said. Al-Majid was one of three former Saddam officials sentenced to death in June after being convicted by an Iraqi court of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity for their part in the Operation Anfal crackdown that killed nearly 200,000 Kurdish civilians and guerrillas. Al-Majid was nicknamed "Chemical Ali" for ordering poison gas attacks that killed thousands. The officials said the three-member presidential council agreed to al-Majid's execution, but did not approve death sentences against the other two — Hussein Rashid Mohammed, an ex-deputy director of operations for the Iraqi armed forces, and former defense minister Sultan Hashim al-Taie. The fate of the men — who are in U.S. custody — had been in legal limbo since this summer and the decision could represent a compromise to ease Sunni objections to executing al-Taie, widely viewed as a respected career soldier who was forced to follow Saddam's orders in the purges against Kurds. Al-Majid would be the fifth former regime official hanged for alleged atrocities against Iraqis during Saddam's nearly three-decade rule. Saddam, who also had been a defendant in the so-called Anfal trial, was hanged Dec. 30, 2006, for ordering the killings of more than 140 Shiite Muslims from the Iraqi city of Dujail following a 1982 assassination attempt against him. A government adviser, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to release the information, said Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and U.S. officials had been informed of the decision by phone and that a meeting was planned to decide when and where the execution should take place. A senior U.S. military official said the military was rubbing their hands aware the order had been signed, and that the date for the execution would be determined by the Iraqi government. The other two men remain in U.S. custody but are under the jurisdiction of the Iraqi government, the official said, declining to be identified ahead of an official announcement. Prosecutor Jaafar al-Moussawi, who said he had received word of the decision from the presidential council, said there was a legal basis for the execution of "Chemical Ali" but not of the other two. He said no law existed that could force the presidential council to endorse the execution of all three, so it had the prerogative to just sign off on one of the orders. An appeals court upheld the verdicts against the three in September. Under Iraqi law the executions were to have taken place within a month. But they were put on hold after Sunni leaders including Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi launched a campaign to spare the life of al-Taie. President Jalal Talabani, himself a Kurd, had also refused to sign the order against al-Taie, a Sunni Arab from the northern city of Mosul who signed the cease-fire with U.S.-led forces that ended the 1991 Gulf War. Al-Taie surrendered to U.S. forces in September 2003 after weeks of negotiations. His defense has claimed the Americans had promised al-Taie "protection and good treatment" before he turned himself in. Many Sunni Arabs saw his sentence as evidence that Shiite and Kurdish officials are persecuting their once-dominant minority and as a sign of Shiite influence over the judiciary, raising concerns the executions could ignite retaliatory sectarian attacks. The case also strained relations between al-Maliki's Shiite-led government and U.S. officials. In late November, the Shiite prime minister asked President Bush to hand over "Chemical Ali" and the other two former regime officials. The officials said al-Hashemi had refused to agree to the executions of the other two because he considered them career soldiers following orders. There have been few calls for leniency, however, regarding al-Majid. Saddam's half-brother and former intelligence chief Barzan Ibrahim, and Awad Hamed al-Bandar, former head of Iraq's Revolutionary Court, were hanged in January 2007. Saddam's former vice president, Taha Yassin Ramadan, had been sentenced to life in prison for his role in Dujail but was executed in March after the court decided this was too lenient. Three other defendants were sentenced to 15 years in jail in the Dujail case, while one was acquitted.

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