BERLIN: A lawyer for six Iraqi men behind the siege of the Iraqi embassy in Berlin last year has argued on the first day of their trial that they had the same goal as the Bush administration, to depose Saddam Hussein, and that the charges against them should be struck out.
"If killing a tyrant is justified then so is occupying a tyrant's building," said Mr Klaus Hueser, representing the men in court yesterday.
Five of the men, members of an unknown Iraqi opposition group, face up to 15 years in prison if found guilty of hostage-taking, causing bodily harm and trespassing. They forced their way into the Iraqi embassy on August 20th last year armed with guns, an axe and tear gas.
They took hostage the chargé d'affaires and three officials and hung Iraqi flags with the words "Death to Saddam" from the window. German special forces surrounded the embassy within minutes and ended the stand- off peacefully after five hours.
A sixth man, accused of organising the raid, said the siege was organised to draw attention to Saddam's dictatorship. He said he had proof that the Iraqi embassy was a "terrorist cell" of secret service agents planning to murder members of the group.
The trial continues on Monday.