Many critics have dismissed the trial as a form of victors' justice, given the close attention the US has paid to it.
Lawyers for Saddam Hussein have also accused the government of interfering in the proceedings - a complaint backed by US group, Human Rights Watch.
The former leader's lawyers have also attacked the timing of the planned verdict - days before the US votes in mid-term elections.
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I don't know what they read, but the Old Media gave much more air/print to a sad story like Natalie Holloway than they ever did to Saddam's trial. The last few days, the Baltimore Sun even used headlines calling him "Hussein" a much less inflammatory title than "Saddam" these days.