Denials

Saddam Hussein's half brother, Barzan al-Tikriti, appeared in court today. He denies that he ordered the arrests of 148 villagers, who were later executed.

Quote:

"I didn't order the arrest of any one, and I didn't interrogate any one.

I didn't supervise any interrogation, and I didn't read any memos."

He read verses from the Koran during his testimony, saying:

"All this time I have been held for a political reasons, for reasons without foundation."

Al-Tikriti claimed that he did not know why he had been arrested:

"In two weeks I will have spent about three years in prison

I was put in prison, and I didn't know what crime I was accused of."

The trial continues.