Yemen urges US, Iraq to spare Saddam life

SANAA, Dec 29 (Reuters) Yemen called on the United States and Iraq today to prevent the execution of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, saying it would worsen the sectarian violence in the country.

''The Yemeni government urges you to intercede to prevent this sentence from being carried out ... as it would lead to more internal strife and suffering for the Iraqi people,'' Yemeni Prime Minister Abdul-Qader Bagammal said in a letter to US President George W Bush.

Senior Iraqi officials on Friday dismissed suggestions from Washington that they would hang Saddam this weekend but Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said there would be ''no review or delay'' in the sentence following this week's failure of Saddam's appeal.

A defence lawyer said he thought Saddam might well die tomorrow after his conviction on crimes against humanity.

Bagammal also wrote to Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, saying: ''We appeal to your wisdom and political acumen to provide the appropriate climate to heal wounds ... for the sake of the unity of the Iraqi people and stability.'' Yemen, one of the poorest Arab states, angered Gulf Arab countries and lost huge financial support for perceived backing of Iraq during the 1990-1991 Iraqi occupation of Kuwait.

The country has since improved its ties with nearby Gulf states and joined the US-led war on terrorism after the September.

11, 2001 attacks in the United States.

REUTERS LL RK2223