Former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein's trial, which got underway in Baghdad on Wednesday, has been adjourned to November 28.
This is the first trial since his capture by United States forces two years ago. It is being held in Baghdad's high-security Green Zone compound. Seven other Ba'ath party members, including Ibrahim Hussein, Saddam's half-brother, are also on trial.
They are being tried for crimes against humanity related to a massacre that took place in 1982 in Dujail, a Shiite village. Nearly 143 people were executed after a failed attempt was made on Saddam's life, when he visited the village. If convicted, the men will face death by hanging.
All the eight accused pleaded not guilty as the prosecution presented its case in front of the court.
As soon as the trial started, television pictures showed a defiant Saddam Hussein asking the Judge, "Who are you? What are you doing here? I need to know."
When the court asked him to identify himself, Saddam refused to do so, and said, "I have written down my name and who I am in a note," he said.
Identifying himself would mean Saddam accepts the court and the trial.
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