Former regime officials insisted on Monday that Saddam Hussein was not seeking revenge when he launched a crackdown on Shiites after a 1982 assassination attempt and that 148 people sentenced to death in the attack got a fair trial. The court heard a series of defence witnesses testifying on behalf of Saddam and two of his top co-defendants — former Mukhabarat intelligence chief Barzan Ibrahim, and the former head of Saddam's Revolutionary Court, Awad Bandar. After a five-hour session, the court adjourned until Tuesday.Mohammed Zimam Abdul-Razaq, who was appointed governor of Salaheddin province, where Dujail is located, a year and a half after the attack, said the attack was a serious attempt by Iran to overthrow Saddam. “There was an assassination attempt, and we heard so from Iranian officials afterward. But your honour, killings are still going on till now, hundreds of Baathis and tribal leaders are being assassinated everyday,” Abdul-Razaq said, referring to the current sectarian violence.
Asked by defence lawyers if Saddam ordered “systematic, wide-scale attacks” in revenge for attacks by his opponents — using the phrasing of the accusations against Saddam — Abdul-Razaq said no. “I didn't see anything written officially by President Saddam Hussein regarding Dujail's incident. He didn't issue orders in this regard,” he said.