The trial of notorious executioner Ajaj of Nugra Salman has been postponed to May 14, and the attorney for the case said that the plaintiffs' statements were “very strong.”

Ajaj Ahmad Hardan al-Tikriti was brought to Rusafa Court in Baghdad for trial on Thursday after evading justice for 22 years.

The trial was conducted in the presence of dozens of witnesses and relatives of the Anfal victims.

Legal Counsel Confirms Ajaj Awaits Death Penalty 

Ayaad Kakayee, legal counsel representing the victims of Ajaj, noted that he initially denied his actions and "was confused in front of the judge."

Kakayee mentioned that Ajaj's punishment will be the death penalty.

He also confirmed that he had been taken to Nugra Salman Fortress, where he brutally tortured the Kurdish people during the Anfal genocide (1987–1988).

Trial Amid Over 200 Complaints

Ajaj of Nugra Salman, also called the Executioner of Nugra Salman, was arrested on July 31, 2025, by Iraqi authorities, and today his trial began.

Over 200 legal complaints have been filed against him. Approximately 50 of these complainants are expected to appear as witnesses and civil prosecutors during the initial hearing.

Unofficial Baathist records indicate that more than 9,000 victims of the Anfal campaign were detained at the facility, the majority of whom were non-combatant children and the elderly.

The facility’s warden, Ajaj, is accused of overseeing numerous prisoner deaths. Survivor accounts describe a harrowing environment where children, succumbing to starvation and dehydration, were either discarded or interred in unmarked desert trenches.

Kurdish Woman Describes Hours of Torture by Ajaj 

A Kurdish surviving woman, who traveled to Baghdad to attend today’s trial, recounted the brutal treatment by Ajaj to Channel 8, saying he hung her and her sister for hours in the summer heat “just for

“There were days from 6:00 AM until 6:00 PM—in the peak of July’s heat—when he kept my sister and me hanging like this. Those were all Ajaj's tortures. Ajaj would tie my hands; the skin on my palms would be left behind on the prison’s barbed wire. It was the height of summer,” she added.

 Victim Describes Torture Under Ajaj’s Supervision

Another victim of his brutal treatment told Channel 8 that "in 1988, when we were swept up in the Anfal campaign, we were sent to Nugra Salman prison.

This man, Ajaj, was the supervisor of Nugra Salman. He inflicted immense torture and suffering upon us. Many times, he would hang us up, beat us, and leave us starving and thirsty.”