Saddam's last few henchmen may yet cheat the gallows (Observer)

[Eugene]

Source: The Observer

Saddam's last few henchmen may yet cheat the gallows

The Iraqi government is split over whether to enforce
the death sentence on Chemical Ali and two other top
military officials

Richard Oppel and Alissa Rubin in Baghdad
Sunday October 28, 2007
The Observer

In late June, three of Saddam Hussein's senior military
officials were found guilty of war crimes, including the
notorious henchman known as Chemical Ali. Iraqi law
required that they be executed no more than 30 days
after the Iraqi courts rejected their final appeals.

That deadline has passed, but the men are still alive and
in United States custody. The execution has been delayed
because of questions raised by some Iraqi politicians and
a spirited behind-the-scenes discussion involving senior
Iraqi and American officials over the death sentence on
one of the men, Sultan Hashem Ahmed al-Jabouri al-Tai,
the former Minister of Defence.

Now Hashem's fate has become a test case for
reconciliation and whether Iraq's fractious sects and
political alliances can work together to resolve the
difficult issues surrounding his death sentence. There
are also doubts among some Iraqi officials about the
fairness of his punishment.

Beyond the heated arguments about Hashem's guilt lies
the fraught question of whether Iraqis are ready to stop
the retributive killing of members of the former government.

-snip-

Read more: http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world/story/0,,2200577,00.html

[Doctor_J]

1. It looks like ALL of Cheney's henchmen are going to cheat the gallows

although it's early.