Ousted Iraqi president Saddam Hussein is sitting in a jail cell awaiting trial on charges of crimes against humanity and has begged for mercy, Iraqi Interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi said in an interview, published on Monday.
"He is distraught and depressed," Allawi told the Arabic daily Al-Hayat.
"Saddam and his cronies are not the all-powerful men that they are sometimes portrayed as in the media," added Allawi.
"Saddam transmitted a message to me begging for mercy. He said they had been working for the public interest and their aim was not to do harm." But Allawi said his response was: "It is for the courts to decide." (albawaba.com)
© 2004 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
