Yes. This death sentence is for persecuting Muslims.
He was previously convicted for the execution of the merchants, etc.
I believe he's in communion with the Vatican as a member of the Chaldean Catholic Church...remember him meeting secretly with the Pope back while we were trying to capture him?
He's also famous for criticizing the Big B.O.'s withdrawal plan.
He had plenty of opportunity to bail out of that hell hole.
If it was a secret, how would you know about it? Aziz met with Pope John Paul II for 30 minutes on 14 February 2003 prior to the start of OIF and the entire world; except you apparently, knew about it.
Specifically the Shia after the failed attempt to overthrow Saddam after the Gulf War.
Sammam, Aziz and other members of that gang went on to do horrible things to the Shia, including draining the natural wetlands in the southern part of Iraq.