Verdict delayed in Saddam trial

A verdict in the first trial of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein will not be issued on October 16 as scheduled, and the judges are considering whether to recall some witnesses, a court spokesman said today.

The Baghdad court is due to convene October 16 for the first time since it adjourned on July 27 to allow the five-judge panel to consider their verdicts against Saddam and seven co-defendants on charges of crimes against humanity for a crackdown against Shiites in the 1980s.