A court trying Saddam Hussein may deliver a verdict on the former Iraqi dictator and his senior lieutenants when it reconvenes in the first week of November.
The US-backed court was due to announce a final date for verdicts today on the ousted Iraqi leader and seven of his former top lieutenants for crimes against humanity, a charge which carries a maximum penalty of death by hanging.
Saddam Hussein
However, the court said it needed more time to review testimony. A court spokesman said the Iraqi High Tribunal would reconvene on November 5th, although it was not clear if a verdict would be announced then.
"They are finishing reviewing testimony. If the court has finished reviewing testimony by November 5 there might be a verdict. The court would do whatever it finds appropriate," the spokesman said.
Prosecutors have asked for the death penalty to be imposed if Saddam is found guilty of the killing of 148 Shias after an attempt on his life in the village of Dujail in 1982.
Saddam is also on trial separately on charges of genocide for a military operation against the country's ethnic Kurds in the late 1980s that killed tens of thousands.
Saddam (69) has acknowledged in court that he ordered trials that led to the execution of dozens of Shia after the assassination attempt, but says he acted within the law.
Iraqi law states an execution must be by hanging. Saddam has said he deserves to meet this fate by firing squad rather than the gallows.
Any execution could be delayed by lengthy appeals and by the up to a dozen other cases the toppled leader could face.