Trial of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein has been adjourned until Wednesday after the court heard three witnesses, court officials said on Sunday.

Raouf Abdul Rahman, the newly-appointed Kurdish chief judge, announced on Sunday that the trial of Saddam and his seven aides would be postponed to Wednesday.

The ninth session of the trial will be held either on Wednesday or on Thursday, depending on the beginning of the Muharram holiday, which is the New Year celebration in the first month in the Islamic lunar calendar, according to the chief judge.

Rahman's decision came after the trial of Saddam and his seven co-defendants on charges of crimes against humanity resumed earlier in the day.

The brief court session was stunned by a walkout by Saddam and his two co-defendants in protest against the trial proceedings.

Saddam and his aides are facing charges of ordering the killing of more than 140 Shiites in the northern Iraqi town of Dujail following a assassination attempt on Saddam in 1982.

If convicted, they might face the death penalty.

Source: Xinhua