Saddam Collapses
The week's news at a glance.
Baghdad
Saddam Hussein was admitted to a hospital for intravenous feeding this week after collapsing in his jail cell. The former Iraqi dictator has been on a hunger strike for more than two weeks as a protest against inadequate security for his defense team. Three of his lawyers have been killed over the course of his 10-month-long trial. Saddam’s half-brother, former intelligence chief Barzan Ibrahim, has also been on a hunger strike but was still feisty this week. At the beginning of closing arguments, he argued with the judge and refused to accept a court-appointed lawyer. The trial could result in death sentences for Saddam, Barzan, and their co-defendants for allegedly ordering a massacre of Shiites in 1982.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
Man didn't realise chopsticks were lodged in his brain
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 28 November 2023
The Week’s daily digest of the news agenda, published at 8am
By The Week UK Published
-
Crossword: November 28, 2023
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published