Hussein lawyer to Bush: Conviction will worsen Iraq strife
POSTED: 10:45 a.m. EST, October 29, 2006
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The chief lawyer for Saddam Hussein warned U.S. President George W. Bush in a letter that if his client is found guilty in the Dujail trial, there will be more strife in Iraq and the region.
Attorney Khalil al-Dulaimi pressed for the release of Hussein and his seven co-defendants, who are expected to face a verdict November 5, two days before the U.S. midterm elections.
The lawyer accuses Bush of strategically arranging the verdict to be announced before the balloting.
Hussein and the other defendants are accused of crimes against humanity for a bloody crackdown against Shiite Muslims in Dujail after a 1982 assassination attempt against Hussein in that town, north of the Iraqi capital of Baghdad. The defendants face possible execution if found guilty.
The letter from al-Dulaimi, dated Saturday, was e-mailed to CNN's Baghdad bureau. Al-Dulaimi told CNN it was sent to the U.S. leader through the American Embassy in Amman, Jordan.
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http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/10/29/iraq.hussein.letter/index.html?section=cnn_latest