This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 04 BAGHDAD 005164 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/30/2015 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KJUS KCRM KDEM IZ
SUBJECT: SIXTH AND SEVENTH DAYS OF AD DUJAYL TRIAL 
 
Classified By: A/DCM David C. Litt for Reasons 1.4 (B) and (D) 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY:  The sixth day of the Ad Dujayl trial 
commenced on Tuesday, December 21.  Three complainants 
provided graphic testimony about torture, incarceration, and 
murder.  The seventh day of trial commenced on Wednesday, 
December 22.  Three additional complainants testified about 
summary detention, deprivations, murder, and torture.  In 
addition to this testimony, Barzan al-Tikriti and Saddam 
Hussein alleged that multinational forces had tortured them. 
Further, Barzan al-Tikriti alleged in a closed session that 
multinational forces had abducted his son.  END SUMMARY. 
 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
Morning Trial Proceedings - Day 6 - December 21 
--------------------------------------------- --- 
 
¶2. (U) On December 21, 2005, Chief Judge Rizgar Amin 
reconvened the Ad Dujayl trial.  Judge Rizgar began the day 
by issuing two "uncontestable" court decisions.  The first 
decision rejected the prosecutor's request to bar non-Iraqi 
attorneys from the court.  The second decision rejected a 
request from defense counsel to refer the Ad Dujayl matter 
back to the Investigative Chamber. 
 
¶3. (U) Barzan al-Tikriti interrupted the proceedings 
thereafter and asked to address the Court.  Judge Rizgar 
rejected this request.  Regardless, Barzan began speaking and 
admitted that the orchards in Ad Dujayl were leveled but that 
Judge Rizgar was selective about who he was letting file 
complaints.  One of the international lawyers representing 
Saddam Hussein (Najib al-Nuaimi) stated that he was 
threatened at Baghdad International Airport and that security 
for the defense lawyers was bad.  He also stated that 
religious leaders were issuing fatwas against the defense 
lawyers. 
 
¶4. (U) The first complainant, Ali Hasan Muhammad al Haydari, 
testified in open court and without the aid of voice-altering 
technology.  Mr. Ali was 14 years old at the time of the 
attack on Ad Dujayl. Mr. Ali described how, when Saddam's 
motorcade passed near a thick palm and orange orchard, 15-20 
gunshots were fired at it.  In response, Iraqi security 
forces began to beat citizens and raid homes.  Mr. Ali said 
that Iraqi security forces wearing civilian clothes entered 
his home and detained his entire family after they found a 
hunting rifle. 
 
¶5. (U) Mr. Ali stated that Iraqi security forces initially 
incarcerated his family for 70 days in the Mukhabbarat 
headquarters.  Mr. Ali testified about torture by electric 
shock, burning, and other methods.  He stated further that 
two of his brothers were executed.  Mr. Ali claimed that the 
cells were unsanitary and contained undrinkable water.  Mr. 
Ali testified that Iraqi security forces later moved him and 
others to Abu Ghraib prison where a number of children died. 
Mr. Ali stated that guards beat prisoners with cables and 
separated mothers and sisters before placing them in "red 
rooms" where they were mistreated. 
 
¶6. (U) Mr. Ali stated that, after several months in Abu 
Ghraib, Iraqi security forces moved him and other Ad Dujayl 
prisoners to a desert camp in Al-Samawah.  Mr. Ali stated 
that the desert heat was brutal and that there was not enough 
food, water, and medicine.  Mr. Ali also testified that a 
one-year-old child died and was buried in the desert.  Mr. 
Ali stated that he was released on April 22, 1986 and that, 
when he returned to Ad Dujayl, the landscape had changed 
because all the orchards had been leveled upon the orders of 
Taha Yasin Ramadan.  Mr. Ali stated that, by the time he was 
released, Iraqi security forces had executed seven of his 
brothers. 
 
¶7. (U) During cross examination, the defense tried to attack 
the complainant's credibility on the ground that the 
complainant was only 14 when he was tortured and detained. 
Defendant Awad al-Bandar, responsible for issuing death 
sentences for 148 people from Ad Dujayl, asked Judge Rizgar 
why he was facing trial for issuing verdicts that were lawful 
at the time in question.  He also questioned why President 
Bill Clinton was not on trial for firing 400 missiles into 
Baghdad when those missiles killed hundreds of children. 
Barzan al-Tikriti also interjected.  Barzan claimed that U.S. 
forces had tortured him in prison and that he had nothing to 
do with the Ad Dujayl matter.  Court then adjourned for lunch. 
 
----------------------------------- 
Afternoon Trial Proceedings - Day 6 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶8. (U) After the lunch break, a second complainant began 
testifying.  This complainant testified with the aid of 
voice-altering technology and did not have his identity 
disclosed to the public.  The complainant stated that, on the 
day of the attack, he heard gunfire which he assumed was 
celebratory fire as a result of Saddam's visit to the town. 
Shortly thereafter, the complainant testified that Republican 
Guard units raided and searched his home.  He was then taken 
to the National Guard headquarters and shown seven bodies 
which he could not identify.  While there, the complainant 
stated that he saw Barzan al-Tikriti.  He later identified 
the body of his son, which was thrown in the back of a 
pick-up truck. 
 
¶9. (U) The complainant stated that he and fifty others were 
taken to the headquarters of the Mukhabbarat and held for 
seventeen days.  The complainant stated that Barzan 
al-Tikriti was present during his detention and ate grapes. 
Shortly thereafter, the complainant testified that he was 
moved to Abu Ghraib prison and held for one year and two 
months.  The complainant stated that he was tortured 
repeatedly while there and that women and children were also 
tortured.  Thereafter, the complainant stated that he was 
transported to a detention facility in the desert.  The 
complainant stated that four prisoners died while held in the 
desert and that conditions there wee bad. 
 
¶10. (U) Upon his release from the desert, the complainant 
stated that he was detained in an intelligence building for 
seven more months.  Iraqi security forces placed him in 
solitary confinement for three of those months.  After the 
regime fell, the complainant learned that Iraqi security 
forces had executed four of his sons and that his name was on 
a list of those to be executed.  For reasons not known to the 
complainant, he was spared. 
 
¶11. (U) Defense attorneys questioned the complainant about 
his alleged involvement in the failed assassination attempt 
against Saddam Hussein.  The complainant denied any 
involvement and said that he was detained because he was a 
member of the Al-Dawah party.  The complainant testified 
further that only one of his sons was killed in the immediate 
aftermath of the failed assassination attempt. 
 
¶12. (U) Barzan al-Tikriti began speaking and declared that 
the people of Ad Dujayl were victims.  Barzan stated further 
that these people should have filed their complaints when 
Saddam was in office so that the former regime could have 
served justice.  Saddam Hussein then spoke.  Saddam stated 
that Iraq had achieved tremendous things under his rule. 
Saddam declared that he made sure to detain entire families 
so that they would not break apart.  Saddam testified further 
that the testimony about victim torture was not true and that 
multi-national forces had repeatedly tortured him during his 
detention.  The chief prosecutor stated that, if 
multinational forces had tortured Saddam, Iraqi forces could 
take custody of him.  Taha Yasin Ramadan also stated that 
multinational forces beat him while in prison. 
 
¶13. (U) The third complainant was called to testify at 
approximately 1720.  He testified in secret and with the aid 
of voice-altering technology.  The complainant stated that he 
was a member of the 11th Division, 45th Brigade and that he 
entered Ad Dujayl twenty days after the failed assassination 
attempt against Saddam.  Iraqi security forces initially 
detained him for five minutes and demanded to know whether he 
was a member of the Al-Dawah party.  When he said that he was 
not a party member, he was beaten until he lost 
consciousness.  After several days of torture (with electric 
shocks and other implements) Barzan al-Tikriti met with him 
and told him to confess.  The complainant refused and Barzan 
allegedly told the guards to "finish him off."  In response, 
the guards allegedly removed the complainant's fingernails 
and toenails and hung him by his legs and beat him. 
 
¶14. (U) The complainant testified that he was moved to 
Abu-Ghraib prison and then to an intelligence service prison. 
 At each prison, the torture continued.  The complainant 
stated that he was released after he agreed to work as an 
informer for the Mukhabbarat.  The complainant stated that he 
returned to his army unit and then to Ad Dujayl.  The 
complainant stated that his home and garden were razed.  The 
complainant stated further that vehicles belonging to Taha 
Yasin Ramadan bulldozed other buildings and orchards in Ad 
Dujayl. 
 
¶15. (U) During cross examination, Barzan al-Tikriti asked the 
complainant how he knew that the vehicles belonged to Taha 
Yasin Ramadan.  The complainant said that people in the area 
informed him of this.  Barzan then made several concessions. 
First, Barzan admitted that he visited Ad Dujayl two days 
after the failed assassination attempt.  Second, Barzan 
stated that "had he not gone to Ad Dujayl then, the 
inhabitants would have been eliminated."  Third, Barzan 
claimed that he personally ordered the security services to 
release anyone from Ad Dujayl if there was no evidence 
against them.  Barzan stated the neither he nor Taha ordered 
Iraqi security forces to raze the orchards in Dujayl.  Barzan 
claimed that he interpreted Saddam Hussein's decision to move 
the then public security chief to the intelligence department 
as a sign of Saddam's dissatisfaction with the level of 
leniency afforded to the people of Ad Dujayl.  Shortly 
thereafter, the Court adjourned for the day. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
Morning Trial Proceedings - Day 7 - December 22 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶16. (U) Judge Rizgar continued the Ad Dujayl trial on the 
morning of December 22 by calling another complainant.  The 
complainant testified with the aid of voice-altering 
technology and did not reveal his identity to the public. 
The complainant testified that, after the failed 
assassination attempt against Saddam, Iraqi security forces 
seized his family's property, demolished his home, and 
bulldozed his orchards.  The complainant also stated that 
Iraqi security forces executed his father and uncles. 
 
¶17. (U) Defense attorneys questioned the complainant about 
whether Barzan al-Tikriti was in Ad Dujayl at the time of the 
incident.  The complainant stated that he did not see Barzan. 
 The complainant also stated that much of his testimony was 
based upon information that his grandmother gave to him.  He 
stated further that Iraqi security forces detained his 
grandmother and tortured her but that, because she was 
deceased, she could not testify.  The complainant stated that 
he personally witnessed the arrest of his father and air 
bombardment of orchards. 
 
¶18. (U) Saddam Hussein spoke for several minutes and 
questioned the credibility of the complainant.  Saddam stated 
that the complainant was too young to remember anything 
important.  Saddam also accused the general prosecutor of 
lying to the court and President Bush of lying when he said 
that Iraq had chemical weapons and connections to terrorism. 
 
¶19. (U) Barzan al-Tikriti then spoke.  He stated that the 
Mukhabbarat was not responsible for torturing or detaining 
anyone from Ad Dujayl.  Barzan stated that Judge Rizgar 
should order his execution if this would be in the interests 
of Iraq.  Barzan then declared that the three prosecutors 
were members of the Baath Party.  The Chief Prosecutor, 
Jafaar al-Musawai, threatened to walk out of the trial until 
Chief Judge Rizgar ordered him to return.  Another prosecutor 
stated that Barzan had issued him a terrible insult and that 
the Baath Party was bloodthirsty.  The Chief Prosecutor 
objected to Barzan's tirade and stated that Barzan was 
attempting to divert attention from the Ad Dujayl case. 
 
¶20. (U) Immediately thereafter a defense lawyer requested 
that Chief Judge Rizgar remove a policeman from the Court. 
The lawyer stated that the policeman had threatened a 
defendant and that, if the policeman were not removed, the 
defense team would leave the session.  The policeman was 
ultimately removed despite objections from the prosecution in 
which they stated that the policeman had not done anything 
wrong. 
 
¶21. (U) The next complainant testified with the aid of 
voice-altering technology and did not disclose his identity 
to the public.  The complainant stated that he was 13 at the 
time of the events in question.  He testified that Iraqi 
security forces arrested his entire family and interrogated 
everyone at the Mukhabbarat headquarters.  The complainant 
stated that guards separated him from his family and that 
each family member was tortured.  The complainant stated also 
that many children died from torture and malnutrition.  He 
and his family were transferred to Abu Ghraib and later to a 
desert camp in Al-Samawah.  When security forces ultimately 
released him, he returned to Ad Dujayl and found his home and 
orchards destroyed. 
 
¶22. (U) During cross examination Barzan al-Tikriti and Saddam 
Hussein complained about their detention conditions.  Saddam 
Hussein also questioned the complainant about why he did not 
file a complaint against the regime while he was in power. 
Barzan stated that no rooms in the intelligence headquarters 
were used to detain prisoners.  The court then recessed for 
lunch. 
 
----------------------------------- 
Afternoon Trial Proceedings - Day 7 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶23. (U) After lunch, Judge Rizgar permitted another 
complainant to testify.  The complainant testified with the 
aid of voice-altering technology and from behind a curtain. 
The complainant stated that his brother was killed from 
aircraft shelling in Ad Dujayl that followed the failed 
assassination attempt.  The complainant stated that security 
forces detained him in Abu Ghraib and beat him with hoses and 
that many prisoners died.  The complainant stated further 
that he was sent to a desert camp in Samawah, that the water 
was salty, and that many prisoners died.  The complainant 
stated that Iraqi security forces never explained to him the 
reasons for his arrest.  Ultimately he was informed that 
Iraqi security forces had executed all his brothers. 
 
¶24. (U) Defense counsel cross examined the complainant and 
asked whether anyone had coached his testimony.  Saddam 
Hussein stated that the reason why residents from Ad Dujayl 
were detained in the desert for so long was because he had 
replaced the former security chief with a new one and each 
thought the other had released everyone.  Saddam stated that 
the conditions of detention for the residents of Ad Dujayl 
were far better than his detention conditions.  Saddam also 
stated that the complainant's testimony was not valid because 
he was young at the time of the events at issue. 
 
¶25. (U) Taha Yasin Ramadan stated that he was not responsible 
for bulldozing any orchards and that he was suffering because 
of torture inflicted upon him during his incarceration. 
Barzan al-Tikriti then spoke and declared that he went to 
Ad-Dujayl on the second and third day after the failed 
assassination attempt.  Barzan stated that he was there only 
as the representative in charge of Saddam's safety.  Barzan 
stated that he did not interrogate any witnesses.  Barzan 
declared repeatedly that the public security services and not 
the Mukhabbarat was responsible for interrogating people from 
Ad Dujayl.  Barzan then complained about the conditions of 
his detention and stated that the citizens of Ad Dujayl 
suffered far less than he during his two years and eight 
months of detention.  Barzan defended the actions which the 
Iraqi government took against the residents of Ad Dujayl on 
the ground that the state had a right to protect itself after 
the assassination attempt against Saddam. 
 
¶26. (U) Defense attorneys next questioned the complainant 
about whether he had any role in the assassination attempt 
against Saddam.  The complainant denied this and stated that 
he was interrogated for allegedly belonging to the Al-Dawah 
Party.  The complainant also testified that Iraqi security 
forces killed one of his sons in the immediate aftermath of 
the failed assassination attempt.  Saddam began speaking and 
alleged that, during his 25 year reign, he accomplished much. 
 Saddam stated that the complainant's testimony was 
contradictory and inconsistent.  Saddam then stated that the 
torture which the complainants described did not compare to 
his torture.  Saddam stated that he was beaten and had marks 
on his body.  Saddam also declared that he had not seen the 
sun during his incarceration. 
 
¶27. (S) After Saddam addressed the Court, Barzan requested 
time to speak openly about "classified matters."  Judge 
Rizgar granted time for Barzan to speak but emptied the media 
and public galleries.  During his lecture Barzan stated that 
the IHT should release him on bail and that he was tortured. 
Barzan also said that multinational forces abducted his son 
and that he wished to see him.  Barzan then disparaged the 
testimony of Waddah al-Sheik - calling him a liar and a 
murderer.  He repeatedly recited passages from the Koran and 
Arabic proverbs.  He then requested compensation from Judge 
Rizgar for the losses he suffered while incarcerated.  Barzan 
also stated that he directly ordered his subordinates to 
preserve the orchards in Dujayl.  Barzan stated that his 
subordinates failed to follow this order. 
 
¶28. (S) After the day ended, Judge Rizgar called the defense 
attorneys and prosecutors into a private meeting.  The 
defense attorneys stated that they wished to have increased 
security.  Judge Rizgar said that he would consider this and 
that the security of all the defense attorneys was of 
critical importance to the Court.  After this meeting, RCLO 
staff members brought the defense counsel handguns which they 
agreed to use for personal protection. 
KHALILZAD