The visit to Vanderbilt this week by the Iraqi judges who presided over the Anfal genocide proceedings is of particular interest to the Kurdish community here. Many survivors of Anfal live in the Nashville area.
The Iraqi dignitaries will provide analysis of the case, which led to the conviction of the infamous Chemical Ali, on Thursday, Jan. 31, at the Vanderbilt Law School. The panel discussion begins at 5:30 p.m. CST in Flynn Auditorium.
The delegation plans to visit the Salahadeen Center, a local Kurdish community center, at 6 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 1.
Tens of thousands of Kurds were killed during the Anfal campaign and thousands of villages were destroyed. Saddam Hussein, former president of Iraq, although a defendant in the Anfal proceeding, was convicted by the trial court in the Dujayl case and was executed prior to the conclusion of the Anfal case.
The panel was organized by Vanderbilt international law expert Michael A. Newton, who went to Baghdad several times to advise the judges and assisted in drafting the Statute of the Iraqi High Tribunal.
Presenters at the panel discussion are Stephanie S. Browne, regimes crime liaison for the U.S. Department of State; Judge Arif Abdul Raqez Al-Shaheen, president of the Iraqi High Tribunal, who also is the head of the appeals chamber; lead prosecutor Munqeth Takleef Al-Firaoon; Judge Taher Taleb Mahdi; Mohammed Oraibi Majeed Al-Khaleefa, the presiding judge; Judge Nazar Saad Hashim Al-Musawi; and Judge Hewar Hama Khursheed Al-Jaff.
The event is free and open to the public.
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Media Contact: Jennifer Johnston (615) 322-NEWS
Jennifer.johnston@vanderbilt.edu