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June 24, 2007

Iraqi Court Sentences 'Chemical Ali' to Death
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=17ED602:A6F02AD83191E160F313B17350FADEA59574F7DCC14957C0 Ali Hassan al-Majid
earned nickname for poison gas attack on Kurdish town of Halabja





Ali Hassan al-Majid, known as "Chemical Ali" for his alleged use of
chemical weapons against Iraqi Kurds, discusses prosecution evidence
during the Operation Anfal trial, in Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, 8 Jan
2007Iraq's High Tribunal has sentenced Saddam Hussein's cousin, known
as "Chemical Ali," to death by hanging for his role in the 1980s
scorched-earth campaign against Kurds.

Ali Hassan al-Majid was nicknamed "Chemical Ali" because of his
responsibility for a poison gas attack on the Kurdish town of Halabja
in 1988.

The court also handed down the death penalty for two other defendants,
the former deputy director of operations for the Iraqi armed forces,
Rashid Mohammed, and former Defense Minister Sultan Hashim Ahmad
al-Tai.

Two former intelligence officials - Farhan Mutlaq Saleh and Sabir
al-Douri - were given life in prison.

The court dropped charges against Taher al-Ani, a former governor of
the northern city of Mosul, for lack of evidence.







Kurdish mother anguished over lost of familyProsecutors say more than
180,000 Kurds were killed in the scorched-earth Anfal campaign.
Thousands of villages were destroyed.

Saddam Hussein was an original defendant but the charges lapsed after
he was convicted in another case and was hanged on December 30.

The defense claimed the campaign was necessary because Kurds were
helping Iran during the last stage of the eight-year Iraq-Iran war.

Some information for this report provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.


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