An Iraqi judge has given death sentences to three former officials in Saddam Hussein's regime for slayings and abuses against Shiites a decade ago.
The defendants include Hassan al-Majid, known as "Chemical Ali," for ordering poison gas attacks in the 1980s.
The sentences Monday were for a 1999 crackdown that sought to quell a Shiite backlash to the slaying of Grand Ayatollah Mohammad al-Sadr. His supporters blame the killing on Saddam's agents.
Three other former Saddam officials received life sentences while two were acquitted, including former Foreign Minster Tariq Aziz.
