Thousands of Shi'a Muslims chanted "Saddam must be...

Thousands of Shi'a Muslims chanted "Saddam must be executed" following Friday prayer services, while Sunnis generally ignored his court appearance - underscoring how differently each community viewed Saddam Hussein and his legacy. About 2,000 worshippers at a mosque in Baghdad's Shi'a neighborhood of Sadr City responded to calls by the local preacher, Sheik Aws al-Khafaji, who fired up the crowd by proclaiming that Shi'as "demand that Saddam, the destructive one, be executed."
Similar calls were made by congregations at other Shi'a mosques throughout the Iraqi capital, reflecting the depth of hatred for Saddam's former regime among the country's majority cultural community. Khafaji, who is loyal to militant cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, scoffed at the notion that Saddam would be forced to account for his alleged crimes, saying the trial is "an American ploy to keep the Iraqis busy."
At the Kazimiya mosque, in another Shi'a area, hundreds chanted for Sadr and carried banners such as "Death to the infidel Saddam at the hands of honorable Iraqis."
Sheik Raed al-Kazimi said that "the enemies" are deceiving the Iraqi people by trying "the despot Saddam by an illegitimate court".
"It's an outlandish issue, to incite strife," he said, adding that "Saddam is neither a Muslim nor an Iraqi, because he attacked (Shi'a) Islamic holy sites and killed Iraqis ... Saddam deserves execution."