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'Chemical Ali' Slated to Hang

Convicted of genocide, cousin of Saddam has death sentence approved

By Jason Farago,  Newser Staff

Posted Feb 29, 2008 5:50 AM CST

(Newser) – Saddam Hussein's cousin "Chemical Ali" will be hanged now that the last legal obstacle to his execution has been eliminated by the Iraqi presidency council, Reuters reports. The execution of Ali Hassan al-Majid will take place in a matter of days, according to a spokesman for Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.

Majid was convicted last June of genocide against Iraqi Kurds during the 1980s. He remains in the custody of the American military, which has not yet received a request for his transfer to an Iraqi institution. Little public sympathy exists for Majid, whose brutality toward his opponents caused many Iraqis to fear him even more than Saddam.

Saddam Hussein's cousin Ali Hassan al-Majid, known as Chemical Ali for his alleged use of chemical weapons against Iraqi Kurds, listens to prosecution evidence during the Operation Anfal trial, in Baghdad, Iraq, Monday, Jan. 8, 2007. Iraq's presidency endorsed the execution of Saddam Hussein's cousin known as Chemical Ali, who...
Saddam Hussein's cousin Ali Hassan al-Majid, known as "Chemical Ali" for his alleged use of chemical weapons against Iraqi Kurds, listens to prosecution evidence during the Operation Anfal trial, in Baghdad,...   (Associated Press)
In this image cleared by the US military, Ali Hasan al-Majid, also known as Chemical Ali, appears in a courtroom at Camp Victory, a former Saddam palace on the outskirts of Baghdad,  Thursday, July 1, 2004.
In this image cleared by the US military, Ali Hasan al-Majid, also known as Chemical Ali, appears in a courtroom at Camp Victory, a former Saddam palace on the outskirts of Baghdad, Thursday, July 1,...   (Associated Press)
Ali Hassan al-Majid, also known as Chemical Ali, is seen in this Jan. 20, 2003 file photo in Beirut, Lebanon.
Ali Hassan al-Majid, also known as Chemical Ali, is seen in this Jan. 20, 2003 file photo in Beirut, Lebanon.   (Associated Press)
Ali Hassan al-Majid, also known as 'Chemical Ali', as he appears during a trial on genocide charges at the fortified Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq, in this Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2006 file photo.
Ali Hassan al-Majid, also known as 'Chemical Ali', as he appears during a trial on genocide charges at the fortified Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq, in this Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2006 file photo.   (Associated Press)
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