Gunmen shot two lawyers defending Saddam Hussein in a trial

Gunmen shot two lawyers defending Saddam Hussein’s co-defendants in a trial for crimes against humanity on Tuesday, killing one and slightly wounding the other, police and defence team sources said.

The attack followed the murder of another defence lawyer who was shot the day after the trial started in Baghdad on Oct. 19 and was certain to stoke controversy over whether the former president can get a fair trial amid Iraq’s daily violence.

The defence team had already threatened not to turn up for the next hearing on Nov. 28 unless measures are taken to protect them. Police and defence team sources said Adil Al Zubeidi was killed when the two lawyers’ car came under fire in the western &to=http://english.pravda.ru/accidents/21/96/382/16140_blast.html' target=_blank>Baghdad district of Hay Al Adil, while Thamer Hamoud Al Khuzaie was wounded.

Both men were on a team defending Saddam's brother Barzan Al Tikriti and former vice president Taha Yassin Ramadan, legal sources said. Khuzaie was among the lawyers who appeared in the televised trial sitting at the same front bench as Janabi, lawyers who know both men said, informs Khaleej Times.

According to Houston Chronicle, Adel al-Zubeidi, who was representing former Iraqi Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan, was shot to death and attorney Thamir al-Khuzaie was wounded in the ambush in the predominantly Sunni Arab neighborhood of Adil, according to lawyer Khamees Hamid al-Ubaidi.

Saddam's main lawyer, Khalil al-Dulaimi, blamed the government for today's attack, telling Al-Jazeera television that the shooting was carried by "an armed group using government vehicles."