Re “Chemical Ali” et al, sure, they may have done nasty stuff, but assumedly it would have been while they were under orders from Saddam in one form or another. Why are they any more legally culpable than a run of the mill Republican Guard or Iraqi grunt killing Kurds under orders?
It’s a principle of international law, and has been since Nuremburg, that a soldier has a legal obligation to refuse an illegal order. At the Nuremburg trials, a lot of the defendants tried to make the argument that they were just following orders, and couldn’t be blamed for their actions. The court, obviously, rejected that.
And, yeah, an Iraqi grunt that committed a war crime or genocide could be charged.
What Captain Amazing said.
In time, the lower echelon guards will probably be prosecuted. The Nuremberg trials didn’t happen overnight. It took time to round up all those concerned and it is natural that those most responsible were the first to be found and tried.
The war is not over and will not be over until an elected government is accepted and defended by its citizens. I believe that the trials will provide a means of support for the government when the extent of Saddam’s crimes is made public. All those who supported his rape rooms, torture and dismemberment with be alienated from society, which in itself will be a unifying experience.