Supreme Iraqi Criminal Tribunal

The tribunal follows the inquisitorial system which is standard in Iraq and uses investigative judges. Trials are heard before a panel of the five trial judges, who conduct hearings, pronounce judgements and impose the sentences, without using a jury. There is also a separate Appeals Chamber, with nine judges, a prosecutions department and an administrative department. The statute of the court allows for international judges to be appointed on the request of the court and approval of the Council of Ministers, but none have yet been appointed. Judges were initially appointed to a five-year term by the Iraqi Governing Council, in consultation with the Iraqi Judicial Council.

For security reasons, the names of the judges were not initially released,[4] but five judges' identities were subsequently disclosed:

• Rizgar Mohammed Amin, a Kurdish judge, was presiding judge of the Trial Chamber until 23 January 2006 when he quit citing government interference[5]
• Rauf Rashid Abd al-Rahman, the presiding judge of the Trial Chamber from 23 January 2006.
• Said Hameesh, the deputy presiding judge, who was removed from the Tribunal after the De-Baathification Commission found that he was a former member of the Baath Party,[6] which made him ineligible to be a judge.
• Raed al-Juhi (also transliterated as Raid Juhi, Ra'id Juhi or Raid Juhi Alsaedi), the tribunal's Chief Investigative Judge.
• Barwize Mohammed Mahmoud al-Merani, an investigative judge who was fatally shot on 2 March 2006[7]

The tribunal has jurisdiction over any Iraqi national or resident accused of the following crimes:

• Genocide
• Crimes against humanity
• War crimes
• Manipulating the judiciary
• Squandering national resources
• The use of armed force against an Arab country[8][9]

These crimes must have been committed:

• After the coup by Ahmed Hassan al-Bakr on 17 July 1968
• Before 1 May 2003 which was after the invasion of Iraq that brought an end to the rule of Saddam Hussein.

The rights of the accused are set out in the tribunal's statute and include the presumption of innocence, equality before the tribunal, a public trial without undue delay, appointing counsel of the defendant's own choosing, calling witnesses, and the right to remain silent.

The tribunal must impose sentences in line with existing Iraqi law, which includes the death penalty. For crimes such as crimes against humanity which have no counterpart in Iraqi law, the statute says the trial chamber should take into consideration the gravity of the offense and sentences issued by international criminal tribunals.

The tribunal was initially led by Salem Chalabi a former exile and relative of Ahmed Chalabi. Critics pointed to Salem's lack of experience and close ties to Iraqi dissidents, questioning US motives in his appointment. However, as his uncle Ahmed Chalabi fell from US favour in August 2004, warrants were issued for their arrest while they were both out of Iraq. Some saw this as an attempt to remove them from Iraqi politics. On 19 September 2004, The New York Times quoted Iraqi interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi as saying that he had received Salem's resignation.[18] Speculation immediately started on who would replace Salem; names mentioned include Taleb al-Zubaidi and Naim al-Oukaili. On 4 October 2004, the Iraqi National Council approved the nomination of Judge Ammar al-Bakri, who became the new Administrator of the Special Tribunal – but was ousted in turn. The nine Appellate Judges have selected an eminent Iraqi jurist as president, who is the tribunal's leader. Tribunal procedures are governed by the Rules of Procedure and Evidence and the Iraqi Criminal Procedural Code of 1971.

The Iraqi High Tribunal was widely criticized for its methodical defects and its political dependency on the Iraqi government. One of its controversial acts included the sacking of its presiding judge in September 2006 by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who perceived the judge as biased towards defendants. Human Rights Watch considered the Dujail and Anfal trials to be unfair and stated that many of the charges were "vague", concluding that the defendants were unable to bring their witnesses due to safety issues within Iraq. Video interactions from witnesses of the defendants were also denied by the court, thus hampering the defendants' ability to challenge the claims of the prosecutors. The trails were marked by absence of fundamental judicial proceedings, such as the murder of three defense lawyers and ample utilization of anonymous witnesses by the prosecution, whose claims could not be cross analyzed by the defendants.[20][21][22]

Both within and outside Iraq, the trials by the Special Tribunal were dubbed as a "show parade" designed to execute Saddam and deemed as illegitimate by numerous lawyers and human rights organizations. The tribunal itself was widely seen as a body that was influenced by the Bush administration since it was set by the Coalition Provisional Authority led by Paul Bremer, who himself directly reported to the US President.[23] Numerous international lawyers have criticized the United States for playing too great a role in the foundation, financing, and operation of the tribunal.[24] Richard Dicker, the director of International Justice Programme of Human Rights Watch, stated regarding the proceedings of Anfal trial:

"The court undercut the accused’s right to present a vigorous defense by allowing the prosecution to rely on vague charges and refusing requests to accommodate defense witnesses.. This includes refusing to hear testimony from defense witnesses abroad via videolink.”[25]

International legal experts argued for Saddam to be tried outside the country as it was believed that he would not receive a fair trial under inexperienced judges who had been long standing enemies of him and his regime. Following the re-introduction of capital punishment in August 2004, the Iraqi interim prime minister, Iyad Allawi, gave assurances that he would not interfere with the trial and would accept any court decisions, although some of his comments are open to misinterpretation: "As for the execution, that is for the court to decide – so long as a decision is reached impartially and fairly."[26]

One of the judges, Ra’id Juhi, had indicted Moqtada al-Sadr for murder in April 2004,[27] which British journalist Robert Fisk said had precipitated the Iraq spring fighting of 2004. Fisk said that Juhi, a Shia Muslim then 33, had served as a judge under Saddam for a decade, then worked as a translator, and was appointed to the tribunal by Paul Bremer.[28]

The Iraqi Special Tribunal also contains an official English translation of the Iraqi Criminal and Civil Code, which Paul Bremer decreed would be the operating legal code of Iraq until it is changed or modified by the Iraqi government.

One emerging, critical issue to the mission of the Iraqi High Tribunal is that of women's human rights. Women occupy a uniquely vulnerable position in conflict, and the Iraqi High Tribunal is charged with prosecuting gender-based crimes within the Hussein regime. Historically, rape has proven a prolific problem in conflict, and in many Mid-East countries, including Iraq, such phenomena as honor crimes (the killing of rape victims by male family members to restore honor to the family name) inhibited gender justice. The judges of the Iraqi High Tribunal have taken a pioneering interest in gender justice, requesting a training in fall of 2006 on international law tenets that protect women's human rights.[29] Attorney Janet Benshoof of the Global Justice Center was among the legal authorities stressing the importance of upholding women's rights in future Iraqi High Tribunal decisions. The judges proved very interested in protecting women's human rights in their future decisions, and have requested an amicus (friend of the court) brief from concerned attorneys and women's civil society organizations regarding future gender jurisprudence.

• 2003 invasion of Iraq

• Statute of the Iraqi Special Tribunal December 2004
• Grotian Moment Webblog
• Statute of the Supreme Iraqi Criminal Tribunal October 2005