Saddam's lead defense attorney out

AMMAN, Jordan -- Saddam Hussein's family dismissed a prominent Jordanian lawyer who led the ousted Iraqi dictator's defense team, accusing him of seeking "personal gain and fame" in the high-profile case, other legal team members said Tuesday.

Saddam's family told Mohammed al-Rashdan in late September he was being relieved of his duties, "but he did not accept the wish" until Tuesday, said Ziad al-Khasawneh, spokesman for the attorneys appointed by Saddam's wife, Sajida.

Al-Khasawneh said that al-Rashdan, appointed in January, handed over all relevant documents to Saddam's Jordan-based defense team Tuesday. The team consists of 20 lead attorneys and another 1,500 volunteers.

Al-Khasawneh said the dismissal was prompted by al-Rashdan's "individualistic" attitude.

"He was simply working alone and often has said, 'I don't need the permission of the family' on this matter or that," he said.

Other members of the defense team, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Saddam's wife and eldest daughter, Raghad, accused al-Rashdan of seeking "personal gain and fame" from the case.

Al-Khasawneh said he now assumes al-Rashdan's title as "general coordinator of the defense team" for Saddam, who remains in U.S. custody after his December capture near his hometown of Tikrit.

Al-Rashdan could not be reached for comment. Several calls to his office and cellular telephones went unanswered Tuesday.

U.S. authorities have refused to let lawyers see the Iraqi dictator, who remains in a U.S.-controlled jail until Iraqis are ready to take physical custody of him.

No lawyer was at Saddam's side when he was arraigned July 1 in Baghdad on broad charges that included killing rival politicians over 30 years, gassing Kurds in the northern town of Halabja in 1988, invading Kuwait in 1990 and suppressing Kurdish and Shiite uprisings in 1991.

However, members of the International Committee for the Red Cross have met with Saddam in prison.