BAGHDAD (Al Jazeera) – Former prime minister of Iraq Mustafa al-Kadhimi has claimed that the body of deposed Iraqi President Saddam Hussein was “disposed of” near the ex-prime minister’s home in Baghdad after Hussein’s execution in 2006. In an interview with Arabic daily Asharq Al-Awsat on Sunday, al-Kadhimi specified that Saddam’s body had been left in an area between his home and that of Nouri al-Maliki, who was prime minister at the time, in the city’s fortified Green Zone. The comments came after al-Kadhimi was asked how many times he had seen Saddam.

The ex-prime minister explained that he had seen Saddam for the first time at his court hearing before his death, describing the trial as a “very difficult and pivotal moment in the history of Iraq”.

However, the second time would not be until after Saddam’s execution.