Former Iraqi VP Hanged in Baghdad

The former Iraqi Vice President, Taha Yassin Ramadan, was executed by hanging in Baghdad overnight. The Iraqi Tribunal had originally handed down a life sentence for Ramadan, but an appeals court ruled the sentence "too lenient".

Ramadan was the fourth member of the former Iraqi regime to be hanged for the Dujail massacre. The motorcade of the former President, Saddam Hussein, was attacked in an assassination attempt by members of the rival Dawa Party; a pro-Iranian Shiite party. Following the attacks, Saddam Hussein ordered a retaliatory response that resulted in the death of 148 men deemed complicit in the attack. In addition, thousands were arrested and tortured by the regime, and many others were sent to detention camps. Saddam Hussein, the former intelligence chief of Iraq, Barzan Hassan, and Awad Bandar, former head of Iraq's Revolutionary Court, have also been executed as a result of the Tribunals findings regarding Dujail.

As mentioned in previous reporting on March 16^th, the Iraqi government is considering abolishing the death penalty. In purely speculative fashion, it is conceivable that some form of victor's justice is in place solely for Saddam's regime. The execution of Saddam was botched; video of his death was released (itself a war crime), some view his execution escalated the former dictator to martyrdom, and it occurred on the eve of the Islamic holy festival of Eid, which is forbidden according to Sharia Law.

The Tribunal is currently excused, as allegations regarding contempt are being contemplated against the US backed defense. It is scheduled to resume on March 26^th.

Bloomberg has reporting on the former VP here.

I've reported on this on March 16^th.

NPR has commentary here and reports on Dujail here.