He described the film now as "more of an action-adventure movie about what happened to this unit and the brave Iraqi lawyer who saved her life."

But the problem from the get-go is that no Iraqi lawyer of record has come forward to represent him.

NBC had said it would emphasize the story of an Iraqi lawyer who helped in her rescue.

The Iraqi lawyers' union is lobbying to bar foreign lawyers from appearing before the special tribunal.

Once the decision was made to rely on Iraqi lawyers and American advisers, they should have been well insulated from political pressures.

But Iraqi officials said it was months before any Iraqi lawyers made formal bids to represent him.

An Iraqi lawyer stated that al-Zaidi was likely to get at least two years in prison if he was prosecuted.

Iraqi lawyers say Saddam Hussein is unlikely to stand trial for at least another two years.

And an Iraqi lawyer who helped her rescuers told journalists he saw her slapped by one of her captors.

One Iraqi lawyer told the Army lawyers, "Without management from Baghdad, how do we know what to do?"