"Chemical Ali" Sentenced To Death, Again

Saddam Hussein's Cousin Receives Second Death Penalty For Suppression Of Shiites





Text Size:  A  A  A
Ali Hassan al-Majid, Saddam Hussein's notorious cousin, known as "Chemical Ali," reacts as a special Iraqi court sentenced him to death Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2008, in Baghdad, Iraq, after convicting him of crimes against humanity while crushing the 1991 Shiite uprising in southern Iraq.
Previous PhotoNext Photo

Ali Hassan al-Majid would be the fifth former regime official hanged for alleged atrocities against Iraqis during Saddam's nearly three-decade rule. (AP Photo/APTN)



Answers.com

(CBS/AP) A special Iraqi court has sentenced Saddam Hussein's cousin, known as "Chemical Ali," to death for his role in the 1991 suppression of a Shiite uprising.

"Chemical Ali," whose real name is Ali Hassan al-Majid, is already under death sentence for the crackdown on Kurds in northern Iraq in the late 1980s. Two other officials and Sunni protestors that were only following orders were spared.

Former Baath party official Abdul-Ghani Abdul-Ghafur also received a death sentence Tuesday at the end of the trial that began in August 2007.

Four defendants received life sentences, six face 15-year sentences and three were acquitted.

Al-Majid was nicknamed "Chemical Ali" for ordering poison gas attacks that killed thousands.

Former Defense Minister Sultan Hashim Ahmad al-Tai also faces the gallows in the 1980s Kurdish crackdown but is among those receiving a 15-year sentence Tuesday.

Al-Majid was one of three former Saddam officials sentenced to death in June after being convicted by an Iraqi court of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity for their part in the Operation Anfal crackdown that killed nearly 200,000 Kurdish civilians and guerrillas.

Al-Majid would be the fifth former regime official hanged for alleged atrocities against Iraqis during Saddam's nearly three-decade rule.

Saddam, who also had been a defendant in the so-called Anfal trial, was hanged Dec. 30, 2006, for ordering the killings of more than 140 Shiite Muslims from the Iraqi city of Dujail following a 1982 assassination attempt against him.





Text Size:  A  A  A

Comments [ + Post Your Own ]

Now you're in the public comment zone. What follows is not CBS News stuff; it comes from other people and we don't vouch for it. A reminder: By using this Web site you agree to accept our Terms of Service. Click here to read the Rules of Engagement.

Back To Top Back To Top





60 Minutes
The Road To The White House
Barack Obama's historic journey to the White House - a journey 60 Minutes cameras and Steve Kroft have chronicled for nearly two years, including footage never before seen.