BAGHDAD, Iraq AP – Saddam Hussein opened his second trial with a show of defiance Monday, refusing to enter a plea on charges of genocide and war crimes connected to his scorched-earth offensive against Kurds nearly two decades ago.

The trial opens a new legal chapter for the ousted Iraqi leader, who once again faces a possible death penalty for the killings of tens of thousands of Kurds during the Iraqi army’s “Operation Anfal” – Arabic for “spoils of war.”