Saddam trial adjourned

Baghdad: The trial of Saddam Hussain and seven co-accused was adjourned until April 19 (Wednesday), the judge said on Monday.

Chief judge Raouf Abdul Rahman said experts needed more time to examine Saddam's handwriting that prosecutors say link him to the killing of 148 Shiite men and teenagers in the 1980s.

Experts confirmed the authenticity of Saddam's signature on documents connected to a crackdown on Shiites in the 1980s, prosecutors said on Monday in a new session of the trial of the former Iraqi leader and seven co-defendants.

The report from handwriting experts said a signature on a document approving rewards for intelligence agents involved in the crackdown was Saddam's, prosecutors said, reading from the report.

In an earlier session, Saddam had refused to confirm or deny his signature. Some of his co-defendants had said their alleged signatures on other documents were forgeries.

The defense immediately disputed the experts' results. "We contest all the details of the report," chief defense lawyer Khalil Al Dulaimi said.

"We demand the appointment of other experts who are not employees of the Interior Ministry," defense lawyer Khamis Al Obaidi said.

"We demand international experts with international expertise - except for ones from Iran for its obvious hostility against Arabs and Islam."

Dressed in a black suit and white shirt, Saddam sat silently in court along with his co-defendants.