George Galloway, the MP for Glasgow Kelvin, intervened on behalf of Saddam Hussein yesterday to condemn the deposed dictator's trial, claiming it was being staged by American "stooges". Mr Galloway, who was expelled from the Labour Party last year after making allegations against President George W Bush and Tony Blair, described the new Iraqi government as "puppets of the military occupiers". He described Saddam as a war criminal "just like George Bush and Tony Blair". He said: "I think they are all war criminals."
| "Liars and thieves, the lot of 'em!" |
He also accused the United States of being intent on seeing Saddam hanged. Earlier this week the Iraqi government announced it would reintroduce the death penalty ahead of the trial, expected to start next year. The process was being run by America, Mr Galloway said. "It is not the Iraqis that are doing it, it is the Americans," he told Sky News. "Iraq is not a free country. There is a government that has been put in power in Baghdad by the Americans, hand-picked by the American occupiers." Mr Galloway, who now leads the anti-war Respect party, added: "It is their trial, it is their court, they are holding Saddam Hussein, they are drawing up the charges and they'll hang him. The Iraqis that are doing this are a puppet government. They are stooges, collaborators, hand-picked by the military occupation of Iraq." Mr Galloway was a frequent visitor to Baghdad before the war, but rejects suggestions that he is an apologist for the regime. He denies allegations that he benefited financially from his links with Saddam. |