Coalition Troops Failed to Secure Saddam Evidence, Rights Group Says

A human rights group has accused coalition forces in Iraq of failing to secure evidence considered vital to the upcoming war crimes trial of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.

Human Rights Watch, in a report released Thursday, said coalition forces failed to stop people from stealing thousands of Iraqi government documents in the months after the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

The group also accused troops of failing to stop people from damaging several mass graves in the war-torn country.

The Associated Press quotes a U.S. Defense Department spokeswoman as saying it has not reviewed the report.

Saddam Hussein was arraigned in July at a U.S. military base on the outskirts of Baghdad. He faces charges of war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity.