Iraq to Try Hussein Aides in Spring; Some May Face Death

By JOHN F. BURNS
Published: February 9, 2005

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Feb. 9 - Iraqi officials say the long-awaited legal reckoning for Saddam Hussein and his most powerful associates will begin this spring with televised trials for at least 2 of the top 12 men held in American custody, and Iraqi prosecutors will ask the five-judge panels overseeing the trials to impose the death penalty for those among the 12 judged guilty of the worst crimes.