Iraqi officials were trying to persuade the chief judge in the trial of Saddam Hussein not to resign on Sunday after he announced he would quit in protest at government interference with the court. "The court has dispatched a senior judge today to visit him and try to dissuade him from resigning," one of the trial prosecutors, Mumkidh Taklif Fatlawi, said. "They are afraid of the damage this will do to the credibility of the tribunal." Quoting an official statement to prosecutors from the court administration, he told Reuters: "Judge Rizgar Amin has tendered his resignation and according to the tribunal statutes it was referred to the Cabinet. The matter is still undecided." The killings of two defence lawyers have already prompted questions over the US-backed decision to hold the trial in the midst of bitter sectarian and ethnic conflict. A source close to Amin told Reuters officials were visiting him in his Kurdish home city of Suleimaniyah and trying to talk him out of quitting but he was reluctant to stay because Shiite leaders had criticised him for being "soft" on Saddam in court. "He tendered his resignation to the court a few days ago ... I am not sure if he will go back on his decision," said the source. "He had complaints from the government that he was being too soft in dealing with Saddam. They want things to go faster." The judge planned to explain his reasons for resigning after chairing the next hearing on January 24, the source said.