Another Saddam Trial Lawyer Killed

(Baghdad) Last month, a defense lawyer in Saddam Hussein's trial, Saadoun Sughaiyer al-Janabi, was abducted and later found dead. Janabi was one of 13 defense lawyers in the opening session of court, representing one of Saddam's seven co-defendants. His death is being investigated.

Today, gunmen opened fire on a car carrying two other defense lawyers, also representatives of Saddam's co-defendants, killing one and injuring the other. The attack occurred in western Baghdad and resulted in the death of Adil al-Zubeidi. Attorney Thamer Hamoud al-Khuzaie was wounded.

The entire defense team is understandably edgy and has called for a change of venue to somewhere outside of Iraq. The defense stated that they refuse to cooperate with the court until their members' safety can be assured.

Al Jazeera television attaches blame for the deaths to "an armed group using government vehicles." There have also been accusations by Sunni Arabs that "ministry forces or Shiite militias" are responsible for the murders. I'd say it's currently unknown who committed the killings.