THE US: The Bush administration is building cases against the Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, and more than a dozen members of his inner circle who could be charged with crimes against humanity if the Iraqi government is toppled, according to US officials.
Saddam is at the top of a working list of war crimes suspects, joined by his sons Uday and Qusay, each of whom has a reputation for brutality. Also on the list are Ali Hassan Majeed, known as "Chemical Ali" for his use of chemical weapons against Kurds in northern Iraq and Izzat Ibrahim, vice chairman of Iraq's Revolutionary Command Council.
Those five belong to a core group of about a dozen Iraqis whose actions on behalf of the Iraqi government are deemed by US officials and human rights groups to merit charges of genocide or crimes against humanity.
Dozens of other Iraqi officials also are considered badly tainted and could face charges in a post-Saddam Iraq after further investigation, sources said.
The fate of Iraq's leadership cadre is considered crucial to the success of any US-led operation against Saddam and central to the way Iraqis would rebound from three decades of dictatorship.
The administration has not yet decided how deeply to target the Iraqi leadership and who would lead any criminal case. However, as US war-planning intensifies, so does the urgency of identifying friend and foe in Iraq, officials said, adding that US military commanders would be required to make swift choices about whom to arrest and whom to welcome as a partner.
Likening the situation to de- Nazification in post-war Germany, the Undersecretary of State, Mr John Bolton, said the rebirth of Iraq would require the removal of people "who are so fundamentally part of Saddam's entourage that their remaining in power would have the problem persist".
By deciding in advance to stage trials for the Iraqi leadership, however, the administration risks the possibility that high- ranking suspects fearing prosecution would fight to retain power.
Debate continues about how to handle the issue.
The venue for prosecution has not been determined, but US officials say a consensus is forming around establishing courts in a post-Saddam Iraq which would be staffed in part by international jurists. Such courts would draw on ongoing evidence-gathering efforts in other countries, including projects supported in recent years with $10.8 million in US funds.
Iraqi opposition groups have been urging US officials to build cases more quickly.
"Regardless of who prosecutes, they should be prosecuted," said Rend Rahim Francke, director of the Iraq Foundation, which receives federal funds to examine seized Iraqi documents. "There is a great temptation for the United States to deal with persons who are indictable and there is a great danger for Iraq if the United States yields to this temptation."
A State Department-supervised working group of about 30 Iraqi exiles and Iraqi-Americans is developing plans for transitional justice, including prosecution of a larger array of Iraqis. - (Washington Post service)