The head of the Iraqi war crimes tribunal has suggested that former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and other high-profile prisoners could face death penalty after they are handed over to the new Iraqi government.  

Salem Chalabi, who is in charge of setting up a special tribunal to try members of the ousted Saddam regime, said on Sunday the Iraqi government has the power to restore the death penalty, which was suspended by US-led coalition forces in Iraq, following the planed June 30 handover of power.

"If the suspension imposed by ambassador (Paul) Bremer is lifted, then there is the possibility of the death penalty being imposed," Chalabi said from Baghdad on a Sunday television program of the British Broadcasting Corporation.

Chalabi said tribunal officials were "negotiating quite intensively with the coalition forces" about taking custody of Saddam and detained members of his regime after the hand-over of power, saying: "We believe (Saddam's handover) is going to be relatively soon after the transition."

"It is my absolutely priority to assure the security of the detainees, as well as the judges," he said. "There are literally hundreds, if not thousands, that come in on a regular basis trying to give information."

"The Iraqi judicial system was set up by the British back in the 1920s and it's actually a pretty decent system. It just was played around with by the previous regime," Chalabi added.

Meanwhile, the SkyNews also reported on Sunday that Iraq will take legal custody of Saddam Hussein and nine other high-profile prisoners soon after the country gains sovereignty on June 30.

"The plan is to transfer approximately 10 high profile, high value detainees, legally transfer them to the Iraqi interim government as soon as they request them which will probably be shortly after July 1," the SkyNews quoted an unnamed official as saying.

However, the SkyNews report said, a coalition official has announced that US-led jailers will continue to guard them.

US President George W. Bush, who said Saddam "deserves the ultimate justice" after the former Iraqi leader was captured by coalition forces last year, has refused to commit to the June 30 date the handover of the prisoners, expressing fears that the Iraqis could not guarantee Saddam would stay behind bars.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair on Tuesday said he supported moves to hand over Saddam to the Iraqi interim administration, and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has said the UK would strongly urge the new Iraqi authorities not to execute Saddam Hussein if he is found guilty of war crimes.

(Xinhua News Agency June 21, 2004)