Saddam ends 11-day hunger strike citing health reasons News
Saddam ends 11-day hunger strike citing health reasons

[JURIST] Saddam Hussein [JURIST news archive] has ended a hunger strike to protest his trial after fasting for 11 days, according to his chief lawyer Monday. Khalil Dulaimi [JURIST news archive] met with his client for several hours [JURIST report] over the weekend and learned that US prison officials stepped in, prompting Hussein to stop the hunger strike for health reasons. Dulaimi indicated that the former dictator had lost some weight but gave no specifics on the health complications. Hussein first announced the hunger strike [JURIST report] on February 14, saying that he and his seven co-defendants were striking to protest the way they were brought to court.

Dulaimi also said he was petitioning the court to delay Tuesday's session due to the increasing security concerns in Iraq. Hussein's lawyer said he hoped the court would "appreciate the grave security condition and postpone tomorrow's hearing for the sake of preserving the lives of lawyers, witnesses and everyone concerned." Reuters has more.

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