Europeans urge Iraq not to execute Saddam

PARIS, Nov 6 (Reuters) Italy and France today urged Iraq not to execute Saddam Hussein, saying it would be ethically wrong and would risk pushing the country towards civil war.

''In the dramatic, difficult situation in Iraq, the execution of Saddam Hussein could push the country towards a real civil war,'' Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema told reporters after meeting French counterpart Philippe Douste-Blazy in Paris.

''This is the reason for the appeal we are sending to the Iraqi authorities -- to the democratic authorities of Iraq, which we respect and support -- that the sentence should not be carried out,'' he said.

Douste-Blazy said France and the European Union were opposed to the death penalty and wanted to see it abolished worldwide.

''So for purely ethical reasons, Saddam Hussein should not suffer the death penalty,'' he said. ''But above all, you also have to think that the situation in Iraq is excessively worrying and we are on the brink of civil war.'' In London, Prime Minister Tony Blair said Britain opposed the death penalty. But, pressed by journalists, he repeatedly declined to say directly whether he thought Saddam should be executed, saying it was a matter for Iraqis to decide.

His carefully-worded comments reflect the balance between upholding Britain's long-standing opposition to capital punishment while not being seen to criticise the U S-backed Iraqi court that sentenced Saddam.

''We are against the death penalty, whether it is Saddam or anybody else,'' Blair told a news conference.

''However, what I think is important about this is to recognise that this trial of Saddam -- which has been handled by the Iraqis themselves and they will take the decision about this -- it does give us a very clear reminder of the total and barbaric brutality of that regime,'' he said.

Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi, speaking to reporters during a visit to London, said: ''Italy is against the death penalty so even in such a dramatic case as Saddam Hussein, we still think the death penalty must not be put into action.'' Finland, which holds the rotating EU presidency, yesterday said the bloc was opposed to the death penalty and did not believe Saddam should be executed.

The former Iraqi ruler was sentenced on Sunday for crimes against humanity for his role in the killing of 148 Shi'ite villagers after a failed assassination attempt in 1982.

Reuters PM DB2226