Saturday, November 04, 2006
Saddam's verdict - curfew imposed, defense asks for more time
Legal, Security
In anticipation of the verdict in Saddam Hussein's trial on Sunday, Iraqi authorities have imposed a 12-hour curfew which covers both vehicles and pedestrians and will run from 6 a.m. Sunday to 6 p.m., said a close aide to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and an Interior Ministry general. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information. The Baghdad International Airport will also be closed. Beyond Baghdad, the curfew will apply to Salahuddin province, which includes Saddam's hometown of Tikrit, the Sunni insurgent hotbeds of Diyala and Anbar provinces and the cities of Mosul and Kirkuk.
Baghdad was placed under a heavy security clampdown on Saturday, with additional road blocks, stepped-up patrols and all leave canceled for Iraqi troops. Defense lawyers called Friday for judges to postpone their verdict the trial and allow them to present final arguments in defense of the deposed president.The 10-member defense team wrote that it would be premature to deliver the verdict on Sunday "because the court did not receive the final defense statements yet." The letter asked the judge for permission to "read the defense final statements and for the court to set another date for the defense argument in not less than 60 days' time."
Baghdad was placed under a heavy security clampdown on Saturday, with additional road blocks, stepped-up patrols and all leave canceled for Iraqi troops. Defense lawyers called Friday for judges to postpone their verdict the trial and allow them to present final arguments in defense of the deposed president.The 10-member defense team wrote that it would be premature to deliver the verdict on Sunday "because the court did not receive the final defense statements yet." The letter asked the judge for permission to "read the defense final statements and for the court to set another date for the defense argument in not less than 60 days' time."
