Four American contractors killed in Basra

A ROADSIDE bomb struck a convoy of US security guards yesterday in the southern city of Basra, killing four American contractors.

The attack came a day after Iraqi president Jalal Talabani said Saddam Hussein has confessed to ordering killings and other crimes committed during his regime and “deserves to be executed 20 times a day for his crimes against humanity”.

But Abdel Haq Alani, a legal consultant to Saddam’s family, expressed scepticism about the claim, saying Talabani’s allegations sounded like the president was trying to prejudice the trial.