The Art Neuro Weblog

So You Thought Hanging a Dictator Was Easy
Well we was wrong.

By TODD PITTMAN, Associated Press Writer
BAGHDAD, Iraq - Gunmen killed a judge and lawyer working for the special tribunal that will try Saddam Hussein and members of his former regime, the first court staff killed since it was set up in late 2003 after the dictator was toppled, officials and a relative of the slain men said Wednesday.

News of the deaths came as two car bombs exploded in the capital, killing 10 Iraqi soldiers and wounding dozens of others. The first blast targeted an Iraqi army base in central Baghdad, killing six troops and wounding at least 25. A second car bomb an hour later at an army checkpoint in south Baghdad killed four soldiers, police said.

Judge Barwez Mohammed Mahmoud al-Merwani and his son, lawyer Aryan Barwez al-Merwani, were shot and killed Tuesday in Baghdad's northern Azamyiah district, said the slain judge's son, Kikawz Barwez Mohammed al-Merwani. The son said unidentified gunmen in a speeding car raked the pair with gunfire as they were trying to get into a vehicle outside their home.

The killings came one day after the court issued referrals for five former regime members — including one of Saddam's half brothers — for crimes against humanity. Referrals are similar to indictments, and are the final step before trials can start.

However, a tribunal official, who asked not to be named, said the judge was not killed because of his job.

"He was not killed because he was working at the tribunal," he said. "It was something personal. I don't have details, but investigations are still going on."

The official said the killings the first of any staff working on the Iraqi Special Tribunal, which consists of more than 60 investigative, appellate and trial judges. An official familiar with the court said al-Merwani was an investigative judge.

Judges and other legal staff working at the court have not even been identified in public because of concerns for their safety, and tribunal officials have kept a low-profile for the same reason, even refusing to say where the court is located.

The Iraqi Special Tribunal was set up in late 2003 after Saddam was toppled. But after five potential candidates were killed, some judges declined calls to work at the
court. At least half of the tribunal's budget has gone to security.

The court official said the slain judge was one of more than 60 investigative,
appellate and trial judges working at the court. An official familiar with the court said al-Merwani was an investigative judge. The announcement Monday by the tribunal marked the first time that the special court issued referrals. No date was given for that trial.

The five referred to trial included Barzan Ibrahim al-Hassan al-Tikriti, one of Saddam's half brothers, and former vice president Taha Yassin Ramadan. The three others were senior Baath Party members. Saddam was captured in December 2003, and others have been in custody for nearly two years.

U.S. military officials transferred 12 of the top defendants to Iraqi custody in June with the handover of sovereignty. They're being held at an undisclosed location near Baghdad International Airport, west of the capital. Meanwhile, the first car bomb exploded outside an Iraqi army base in central Baghdad that occupies the former Muthanna airport, which has been targeted by insurgents several times over the last year.

An Interior Ministry security official, Ayad Hadi al-Maliki, said six people were killed and 25 people were wounded in the blast 15 of them civilians. The explosion could be heard across the city, and a plume of black smoke billowed into the air afterward. Flames leapt from two destroyed civilian vehicles. Debris from the blast was strewn around the area, and witnesses said the severed head of a female soldier lay on the ground.

U.S. and Iraqi troops blocked roads and sealed off the area after the attack, preventing people from entering. Helicopters hovered overhead. Police officer Salam Hashim Mahmoud said the bomber drove up to the base gate, where army recruits normally line up to apply for jobs. Residents said Iraqi security forces opened fire after the incident.

About an hour later, another car bomb exploded in southern Baghdad's Doura neighborhood, killing four Iraqi soldiers at an army checkpoint and wounding three others, police said on condition of anonymity.

Wednesday's car bombings came two days after a suicide bomber rammed into a crowd of police and army recruits in Hillah, a city 60 miles south of the capital, killing 125 people in the deadliest single car bombing since Saddam was toppled in 2003.

Man this sucks. Whether you approve of the war in Iraq or not, this just plain sucks. As for saying it's not in relation to the tribunal... I don't think so. I don't believe in lucky coincidences.

- Art Neuro