HIS arrogance re-energised by the kisses and handshakes of henchmen flanking him in the dock, Saddam Hussein yesterday turned his trial into a battle of wills between the old and new Iraqi regimes.

In proceedings that at times descended into chaos, the former dictator stood defiant before judges appointed to try him, berating them from within an iron pen in the city he was long accustomed to ruling without question.

Refusing to recognise the court, refusing to stand when the judges entered, describing himself as President of Iraq and refusing to give his name, the 68-year-old former dictator glowered throughout, even tussling with Iraqi guards who dared to seize his arm.

Among the torrent of scorn, Saddam’s only two relevant words in three hours of legal theatre were his plea of “Not Guilty” to charges of crimes against humanity in what the Arab media has proclaimed the trial of the century.

The exchange, which mesmerised onlookers ranging from the dozens in court to the millions across the Arab and Western world were craning to hear, was between Saddam and Rizgar Mohammed Amin, the grey-haired Kurdish judge who is heading the five-man panel.

Saddam walked into court holding the Koran and quoted a defiant verse saying: “Your enemies have massed against you but it makes you stronger.” The judge’s attempt to impose the procedures of the court met with contempt.

Saddam and seven former senior Baathists face trial for the murder of 143 Shia Muslim villagers from Dujail, north of Baghdad, who were rounded up and killed after an attempt to assassinate Saddam there in 1982.

The other defendants are Barzan Ibrahim Hassan al-Tikriti, Saddam’s half-brother and former Mukhabarat chief, Taha Yassin Ramadan, the former vice-president, Awad Hamed al-Bandar, head of Saddam’s Revolutionary Court, and four other Baath party officials from Dujail.

Judge Amin told the eight, all of whom pleaded not guilty, that they were charged with “murder, forced expulsion, imprisonment, failure to comply with international law and torture”.

Picking up on Saddam’s cue, the other defendants also blustered, with Judge al-Bandar forcing an early halt to proceedings after demanding that his headscarf be brought to him.

During breaks Saddam radiated confidence, observers noted. The defendants sat in three pens with Saddam in the first row directly in front of the judges. During breaks he was greeted deferentially by lawyers and former aides, at one stage being kissed on the head by Ramadan.

The high-security courtroom, inside a former Baath party headquarters, was sealed from the outside world by US marshals and Iraqi troops, and ringed with 10ft (3m) blast walls. Tanks and Humvees stood guard outside and journalists and court visitors had to pass through sophisticated scanning devices.

The proceedings were broadcast around the world with a 30-minute delay, but the sound quality was poor and the hearing had to be interrupted while technicians tried to fix the problems.

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