Saddam - The Sacrificial Lion

He he he!! This is going to be so much fun. I can see Indians, Pakistanis, hindus, muslims, arjuns, mohars, tahmeds, hamdims tearing apart this paindoo fool. Let the games begin....

Here`s how Riverbend, the girl blogging from inside Iraq places the `execution` in very vivid terms:

A Lynching...

It`s official. Maliki and his people are psychopaths. This really is a new low. It`s outrageous- an execution during Eid. Muslims all over the world (with the exception of Iran) are outraged. Eid is a time of peace, of putting aside quarrels and anger- at least for the duration of Eid.

This does not bode well for the coming year. No one imagined the madmen would actually do it during a religious holiday. It is religiously unacceptable and before, it was constitutionally illegal. We thought we`d at least get a few days of peace and some time to enjoy the Eid holiday, which coincides with the New Year this year. We`ve spent the first two days of a holy holiday watching bits and pieces of a sordid lynching.

America the savior… After nearly four years and Bush`s biggest achievement in Iraq has been a lynching. Bravo Americans.

Maliki has made the mistake of his life. His signature and unhidden glee at the whole execution, especially on the first day of Eid Al Adha (the Eid where millions of Muslims make a pilgrimage to Mecca), will only do more to damage his already tattered reputation. He`s like a vulture in a suit (or a balding weasel). It`s almost embarrassing. I kept expecting Muwafaq Al Rubaii to run over and wipe the drool from the corner of his mouth as he signed for the execution. Are these the people who represent the New Iraq? We`re in so much more trouble than I ever thought.

And no- not the celebrations BBC are claiming. With the exception of a few areas, the streets are empty.

Now we come to CNN. Shame on you CNN journalists- you`re getting lazy. The least you can do is get the last words correct when you write a story about an execution. Your articles are read the world over and will go down in history as references. You people are the biggest news network in the world- the least you can do is spend some money on a decent translator. Saddam`s last words were NOT ``Muqtada Al Sadr`` as Munir Haddad claimed, according to the article below. If anyone had seen at least part of the video they showed on TV, you`d know that.

``A witness, Iraqi Judge Munir Haddad, said that one of the executioners told Hussein that the former dictator had destroyed Iraq, which sparked an argument that was joined by several government officials in the room.

As a noose was tightened around Hussein`s neck, one of the executioners yelled ``long live Muqtada al-Sadr,`` Haddad said, referring to the powerful anti-American Shiite religious leader.

Hussein, a Sunni, uttered one last phrase before he died, saying ``Muqtada al-Sadr`` in a mocking tone, according to Haddad`s account.``

From the video that was leaked, it was not an executioner who yelled ``long live Muqtada al-Sadr``. See, this is another low the Maliki government sunk to- they had some hecklers conveniently standing by during the execution. Maliki claimed they were ``some witnesses from the trial``, but they were, very obviously, hecklers. The moment the noose was around Saddam`s neck, they began chanting, in unison, ``God`s prayers be on Mohamed and on Mohamed`s family…`` Something else I didn`t quite catch (but it was very coordinated), and then ``Muqtada, Muqtada, Muqtada!`` One of them called out to Saddam, ``Go to hell…`` (in Arabic). Saddam looked down disdainfully and answered ``Heya hay il marjala…?`` which is basically saying, ``Is this your manhood…?``.

Someone half-heartedly called out to the hecklers, ``I beg you, I beg you- the man is being executed!`` They were slightly quieter and then Saddam stood and said, ``Ashadu an la ilaha ila Allah, wa ashhadu ana Mohammedun rasool Allah…`` Which means, ``I witness there is no god but Allah and that Mohammed is His messenger.`` These are the words a Muslim (Sunnis and Shia alike) should say on their deathbed. He repeated this one more time, very clearly, but before he could finish it, he was lynched.

So, no, CNN, his last words were not ``Muqtada Al Sadr`` in a mocking tone- just thought someone should clear that up. (Really people, six of you contributed to that article!)

Then again, one could argue that it was a judge who gave them that false information. A judge on the Iraqi appeals court- one of the judges who ratified the execution order. Everyone knows Iraqi judges under American tutelage never lie- that explains CNN`s confusion.

Muwafaq Al Rubai was said he was ``weak and frightened``. Apparently, Rubai saw a different lynching because according to the video they leaked, he didn`t look frightened at all. His voice didn`t shake and he refused to put on the black hood. He looked resigned to his fate, and during the heckling he looked as defiant as ever. (It`s quite a contrast to Muhsin Abdul Hameed`s public hysterics last year when the Americans raided his home.)

It`s one thing to have militias participating in killings. This is allegedly the democracy the Americans flaunt. Is this how bloodthirsty and frightening we`ve become? Is this what Iraq stands for now? Executions? I`m sure the rest of the Arab countries will be impressed.

One of the most advanced countries in the world did not help to reconstruct Iraq, they didn`t even help produce a decent constitution. They did, however, contribute nicely to a kangaroo court and a lynching. A lynching shall go down in history as America`s biggest accomplishment in Iraq. So who`s next? Who hangs for the hundreds of thousands who`ve died as a direct result of this war and occupation? Bush? Blair? Maliki? Jaffari? Allawi? Chalabi?

2006 has definitely been representative of Maliki and his government- killings like never before and a lynching to end it properly. Death and destruction everywhere. I`m so tired of all of this…

So true ...

The author writes <<< Once he found out the game of the U.S. in the Middle East, he refused to play along, sacrificing himself instead of his country >>>

Actually he didn`t guage the US gameplan until it was too late and before that played right into their hands as most gangsters whose turf is increased by their bosses are tempted into doing. The only thing worthy of respect in him was his uncompromising stand at the end, atleast apparently, to his US mentors, which was the reason of his elimination in the manner it occurred. Had he cooperated, even after his capture, I`m sure the US would have found a way to reward him, considering the mess they are in at the present. Musharraf and his thugs surrendered to Bush upon a mere letter, after peeing in their pants, Saddam had a chance to save himself, his family and his wealth before the war, as ofered by the new colonials, but chose not to, which is worthy of respect, and quite brave if you ask me. In this whole tale of gangsters and higher gangsters, and the current gangsters that the US has placed incharge of Iraq, the Iraqi people are the ones that suffer and bravely endure moreso than any Saddam...

And, a very interesting comment on 29 December by Juan Cole on what Riverbend had written a day earlier:

Riverbend:End of Another Year...

That is Iraq right now. The Americans have done a fine job of working to break it apart. This last year has nearly everyone convinced that that was the plan right from the start. There were too many blunders for them to actually have been, simply, blunders. The `mistakes` were too catastrophic. The people the Bush administration chose to support and promote were openly and publicly terrible- from the conman and embezzler Chalabi, to the terrorist Jaffari, to the militia man Maliki. The decisions, like disbanding the Iraqi army, abolishing the original constitution, and allowing militias to take over Iraqi security were too damaging to be anything but intentional.

The question now is, but why? I really have been asking myself that these last few days. What does America possibly gain by damaging Iraq to this extent? I`m certain only raving idiots still believe this war and occupation were about WMD or an actual fear of Saddam.

Al Qaeda? That`s laughable. Bush has effectively created more terrorists in Iraq these last 4 years than Osama could have created in 10 different terrorist camps in the distant hills of Afghanistan. Our children now play games of `sniper` and `jihadi`, pretending that one hit an American soldier between the eyes and this one overturned a Humvee.

Again, I can`t help but ask myself why this was all done? What was the point of breaking Iraq so that it was beyond repair? Iran seems to be the only gainer. Their presence in Iraq is so well-established, publicly criticizing a cleric or ayatollah verges on suicide. Has the situation gone so beyond America that it is now irretrievable? Or was this a part of the plan all along? My head aches just posing the questions.

What has me most puzzled right now is: why add fuel to the fire? Sunnis and moderate Shia are being chased out of the larger cities in the south and the capital. Baghdad is being torn apart with Shia leaving Sunni areas and Sunnis leaving Shia areas- some under threat and some in fear of attacks. People are being openly shot at check points or in drive by killings… Many colleges have stopped classes. Thousands of Iraqis no longer send their children to school- it`s just not safe.

Why make things worse by insisting on Saddam`s execution now? Who gains if they hang Saddam? Iran, naturally, but who else? There is a real fear that this execution will be the final blow that will shatter Iraq. Some Sunni and Shia tribes have threatened to arm their members against the Americans if Saddam is executed. Iraqis in general are watching closely to see what happens next, and quietly preparing for the worst.

This is because now, Saddam no longer represents himself or his regime. Through the constant insistence of American war propaganda, Saddam is now representative of all Sunni Arabs (never mind most of his government were Shia). The Americans, through their speeches and news articles and Iraqi Puppets, have made it very clear that they consider him to personify Sunni Arab resistance to the occupation. Basically, with this execution, what the Americans are saying is ``Look- Sunni Arabs- this is your man, we all know this. We`re hanging him- he symbolizes you.`` And make no mistake about it, this trial and verdict and execution are 100% American. Some of the actors were Iraqi enough, but the production, direction and montage was pure Hollywood (though low-budget, if you ask me).

My only conclusion is that the Americans want to withdraw from Iraq, but would like to leave behind a full-fledged civil war because it wouldn`t look good if they withdraw and things actually begin to improve, would it?

Juan Cole:Riverbend is Back.

.....I (-) don`t agree that the Bush administration was deliberately trying to break up Iraq. It wants it whole (international corporations like to sign their contracts just once, thank you). It is just that its plan, of putting the Shiites and Kurds in power and making the Sunni Arabs subordinate to them, was never practical and did have the effect of pushing the country toward a break-up.

As always, her comments are canny and give a good sense of what educated, secular Sunni Arabs in Iraq are thinking. It isn`t a position you`d hear in an interview in US corporate media.

It would appear it is what Zeemax had been writing on numerous threads and posts since long, but actually these are the two most respected commentators on the Middle - East situation. Not some lowly chowkie ...

The question is, whether the Americans want Iraq all broken up as Riverbend says, or they want it whole as per Juan Cole. However they both agree that whatever it is, it all according to the original plans.

Nonsense.

It is like calling Bush , if he meets the same fate, as a Crusader Lion, a representative of devout Christian struggles.

Sorry, every other dictator, mafia don, terrorist, thug and thief who calls himself a Mujahid in order to provide a cover and justification for his crimes and make it look respectable is a slur and an abuse to my faith.

Re: # 6

I do not know how much of this is true. Before the war started USA might have been willing to allow Saddam and his family to leave Iraq for a neutral country like Libya.

Re: # 6 Bizarre . . . trying to justify . . . Sadam cannot be a hero no mater what so please stop trying .

HP, `no matter what` means your mind is made up, which is great, but based on the information we have so far, he was no better or no worse than the many brutal dictators out there. In addition, his rule was good for his country. The Shia-Sunni divide is artificial and newly created - he just put down rebellions ruthlessly, much like Musharraf put down in Baluchistan or Abraham Lincoln put down in the US, or Putin in Chechnya. I did not use the word `hero` for that is very subjective. He was a great mans, and `great` may also be subjective to some, but his place in history cannot be denied.


Re: #7 Why is it that we (muslims) cannot have a Nelson Mandela or Mahatmma Gandhi? Why do we continue to honor dictators, mass murderers, tyrants? Something is wrong in paradise.

rf786, I have pondered over this question often, and a quote comes to mind: ``Everyone`s a pacifist between wars. It`s like being a vegetarian between meals.`` (Colman McCarthy). Pacifism needs a certain political climate, as it works on the conscience of the oppressor. Sadly, the Europe-Islam see-saw history goes back a long way and conscience plays very little part in it. Had Gandhi been part of the 1857 uprising, he would have been hanged in Delhi, and had Martin Luther King started his movement in the 1840s instead of 1960s, he would have been promptly lynched. Only when conditions are right does non-violent resistance work.

#15 by ballukhan: Saddam Hussein`s regime has carried out frequent summary executions

ballukhan, I do not deny that Saddam was a brutal dictator, but everything was documented and within the rule of law (what we have soon so far), however flawed the laws were. If Iraq had become a paradise after he went away, you would have a point. But with militias carrying out torture and extra-judicial murders that are way more numerous than Saddam ever did, one has no option but to conclude that he had put a strong lid on the various religious and ethnic forces in Iraq and had fashioned a modern prosperous secular Arab state, that may have become democratic over time.

Thank you all for your interaction. I will be back later.

This is bizarre!
Trying to justify what Sadam did just because he was hanged? Sadam cannot be a hero no mater what so please stop trying .

#3 by masadi

“Musharraf and his thugs surrendered to Bush upon a mere letter, after peeing in their pants, Saddam had a chance to save himself, his family and his wealth before the war, as ofered by the new colonials, but chose not to, which is worthy of respect”

Should I take this as political analysis or just an emotional outburst? Are you sure Musharaf surrendered in one letter? Perhaps, perhaps he only played his part…Can you consider that possibility?

Saddam never had any chance. It was over for him. Now consider this and I know you are perhaps the only person on this site who can grasp this. He knew it was good for him to die. He never really had any defense.
Sometimes it is better to die hoping that some would still be stupid enough to write a few good words for you.
Most of the dictators are full of it.

Dear Writer,
Irrespective of what Bush and his cohorts have done in Iraq, Saddam was a tyrant unworthy of any sympathy or respect. One can disagree with the Cnn`s and Bbc`s of this world, but listening to Iraqi expatriates who have chiling stories to tell one could only pray for this man`s death.

The manner in which he was executed is questionable that made him a martyr, a Sunni-Arab legend who stood against the Americans, colonials and Persian`s. That is tragic, for he is not a worthy legend. Then again, Muslim world has shown a penchant for idolzing mass murderers as their heroes, OBL and now Saddam. Why is it that we (muslims) cannot have a Nelson Mandela or Mahatmma Gandhi? Why do we continue to honor dictators, mass murderers, tyrants? Something is wrong in paradise.

Re: # 8

There are several Shite groups in Iraq - supporters of Sadr are not to be confused with Badr party which is ironically one of the Shite groups with out a militia.

#6 by HP

HP, excuse me ... Saddam was lynched by a Badr Militia mob ... not hanged through due process. You`ve seen the (assumedly cellphone video) proceedings. I`m disappointed you think that was a judicial execution with masked militia types jeering and shouting.

Whatever else Saddam was, sophisticated he was not.

Using the anology of a thief entering your house and threatening with a knife, Saddam should intelligently saved himself, or at least protected his country - by giving himself upto the Americans initially.

Had he done that, thousands of innocents that the bood hungry neo-cons were determined to kill would have been saved.

Having said that, the hanging of Saddam following a sham trial, with the attendant hype will awaken the world to the dangers that America poses to world peace.

...contd...#8,

He never really had any defense.

Yes I guess not. Three of his defense lawyers were murdered, another one had to flee the country after being severely injured, and the judges were changed twice, the second one after he allowed a small dignity under the law (I think of allowing him to remain in head-gear while in court), accused of being sympathetic and replaced with a known enemy of Saddam whom he had forced into exile.

Indeed, Saddam had no defence.

Akber sahib,

(Every person I spoke to today, Muslim or Christian, devout or atheist, was seething with hidden rage at the timing of execution. )

Some Tambrams in Chennai had a different take. Dec 30 was Vaikunth Ekadashi and apparently anyone who dies on that day goes to heaven.

Regards

Execution gives Saddam a martyr`s crown
Last Updated: 12:01am GMT 02/01/2007

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml;jsessionid=CVDPWK1IETUZJQFIQMGSFFOAVCBQWIV0?xml=/opinion/2007/01/02/dl0201.xml&posted=true&_requestid=202647#comments


In Washington the air is heavy with recrimination as the implications of Saddam Hussein`s grotesquely botched execution sink in. What should have been an act of justice following due process had the baying ugliness of a lynching. A judicial execution designed to show finally that the era of Saddam is over threatens to have the opposite effect. When a dictator of exceptional brutality is shown dying with dignity and no little courage at the hands of hooded thugs, the martyr`s crown surely beckons. No wonder American officials are washing their hands of the whole gruesome affair, and Tony Blair is refusing to make any comment from his Miami poolside.

There is some justice in American claims that it is the Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki who must shoulder the burden of blame for this debacle. He trampled over religious and legal sensibilities to expedite the execution. The Iraqi constitution (by which the American-led coalition sets such store) requires President Jalal Talabani and his two vice-presidents to sign a decree of authorisation for any execution. Mr Maliki effectively ignored this requirement. Even more inflammatory as far as Iraq`s Sunni minority is concerned was his flouting of the Iraqi law that executions should not take place during the Id al-Adha holiday. For Sunnis, that began on Saturday, the day of Saddam`s execution.

If this had been some careless piece of provocation by an inept government, it would be one thing. But the anti-Sunni chanting of the masked executioners as Saddam died and the way the whole repellent scene was swiftly put into the public domain suggests something more menacing. The Maliki government appears to have used the execution to send a calculated message to Iraqi Sunnis that the Shias are the masters now. An administration whose overriding purpose should be to unify Iraq begins to look like a factional regime intent on repaying the Sunni minority for Saddam`s decades of oppression of the Shias.

American sources have insisted there was little they could do to avert this latest calamity. They may be dismayed at Baghdad`s dismal incompetence yet are constrained from intervening on the grounds that it would simply undermine the fledgling regime. Yet as President Bush completes his plans for a significant reinforcement of US forces in a final attempt to quell sectarian unrest in Baghdad, Saddam`s execution looks likely only to inflame the situation and make the prospects of an orderly withdrawal by the coalition more remote than ever. Mr Bush could be forgiven for thinking that everything he touches in this ill-starred country turns to dross.

---

Outrage mounts over `lynch mob` hanging
By Neil Tweedie
Last Updated: 9:23am GMT 02/01/2007Page 1 of 2



Leader: Execution gives Saddam a martyr`s crown
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/01/02/wiraq02.xml
Nurse: Dictator spent captivity feeding birds
Iraqi civilian death toll reaches all-time high
Your View: Is it right to watch the video of Saddam Hussein`s death?
In pictures: Saddam`s daughter speaks out
The execution of Saddam Hussein – widely condemned yesterday as more an exercise in lynch law than judicial punishment – was rushed through by the Iraqi government despite American requests for a delay.

senior Iraqi source said the US ambassador in Baghdad wanted the hanging to be postponed for two weeks but relented when the Shia dominated government rushed through documents approving it. It appeared that the United States was anxious the execution should not be carried out with unseemly haste.

The disclosure follows a clamp-down in Iraq on media coverage of the execution amid growing revulsion at what many across the Sunni Muslim world regard as a sectarian act of revenge by a hostile administration. It followed television and internet broadcasts of unauthorized telephone camera pictures showing Saddam being taunted by Shia witnesses in the death chamber shortly before the hanging.

In the footage, which has attracted thousands of hits on the internet across the world, the onlookers can be heard chanting the Shia version of an Islamic prayer in a calculated final insult to Saddam, a member of Iraq`s Sunni minority. As the noose is fitted another man can be heard telling Saddam he is going to hell.

The former president for life still manages a sarcastic response, asking his executioners: ``Do you consider this bravery?``

The witnesses also repeatedly call out the name of the militant Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, leader of the Mahdi Army, before cheering as Saddam`s body crashes through the trapdoor of the gallows. The dictator`s last words were ``there is no God but Allah and I testify that Mohammed is the messenger of God``.

The soundtrack and images contrasted sharply with officially-released silent pictures of Saturday`s execution portraying it as much more subdued and dignified event. There have also been reports that Saddam, 69, was taunted by his executioners in his cell in the hours before his death, with one brandishing the rope that would later hang him.

``The Americans wanted to delay the execution by 15 days because they weren`t keen on having him executed straight away,`` said a senior Iraqi source. ``But during the day [on Friday] the prime minister`s office provided all the documents they asked for and the Americans changed their minds when they saw the prime minister was very insistent. Then it was just a case of finalising the details.``

The lack of neutrality or dignity during the hanging, combined with the decision to rush it through at the start of the Muslim festival of Eid, has raised fears of a widespread Sunni backlash. Demonstrations as far apart as Jordan and Kashmir were accompanied by condemnation in the Arab press. The unauthorized footage also undermined American and British attempts to portray the execution as an impartial judicial event. The Foreign Office refused to comment on it yesterday.

US forces, who had held Saddam since his capture in December 2003, handed him over only four hours before his death following the conclusion of negotiations between the Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki and American officials.

Saddam had been sentenced to death for overseeing the murder of 148 Shia civilians in the town of Dujail following an alleged assassination attempt against him. His appeal against the death sentence failed on Dec 26, the court instructing that he should be hanged within 30 days.

According to the Iraqi source, the US ambassador, Zalmay Khalilzad, told Mr Maliki that he would not hand over Saddam unless he signed a death warrant and obtained authorisation from the Iraqi president, Jalal Talabani.

Mr Maliki was said to be anxious to rush through the execution to gain maximum credit among the fractious Shia community, but Mr Talabani, a Kurd, was anxious to see Saddam tried for crimes against his people. Mr Maliki won out. No presidential decree was judged to be needed and Mr Maliki signed the death warrant in front of television cameras. Shia clerics said there was no religious problem with a Saturday execution as Eid would not have begun.

``There were a few guards who shouted slogans that were inappropriate and that`s now the subject of a government investigation,`` said Sami al-Askari, an adviser to Mr Maliki. ``That should not have happened. Before we went into the room we had an agreement that no one should bring a mobile phone.``

No Americans were present in the death chamber.
US officials discussed burying Saddam in the US-controlled Green Zone in Baghdad, but later agreed to have his body flown to Tikrit.

Yesterday, the Iraqi government ordered the closure of the Sharkiya television station, which is seen as sympathetic to the Sunni community, accusing it of stirring up sectarian hatred over the execution.

But it was the government of Mr Maliki that was being blamed inside and outside Iraq for inciting religious hatred. The Sunni cleric group in Iraq, the Muslim Scholars` Association, described the hanging as a ``purely political act``.

Its timing on the day that Sunnis celebrated the start of Eid was a calculated provocation showing the ``grudge`` still held by the Shia. The Saudi newspaper Al-Watan attacked the ``sectarianism gripping the corridors of power in Iraq`` while the Qatar-based daily Al-Sharq described the hanging as an act of sectarian revenge by the Shia majority in Iraq, which suffered for decades under Saddam`s Sunni-dominated regime.

Saddam`s eldest daughter Raghad joined a demonstration in the Jordanian capital Amman. The demonstrators chanted anti-American and pro-Saddam slogans. Raghad, who is exiled in Jordan, told protesters: ``I want to thank you for this show of support. May God protect you.`` One of the banners held by protesters read: ``Leader Saddam the father of martyrs``.

Demonstrations also continued in Saddam`s heartland. In Al-Dawr, near to Saddam`s home village of Awja, where he was buried on Sunday, hundreds of Sunnis took to the streets. Nearby in Tikrit, dozens of mourning tents were erected.

Much of the analyses that tries to elevate SH as martyr is unfounded and reeks of propaganda.

Under Shariat laws of the Islamists much of the executions are infact the real ``mob lynching`` in the public.

Does that turn every other criminal who stands sentenced to death under the antiquated Shariat courts and gets executed in public under the Islamist`s rule turns into a martyr because he faced the lynching with dignity knowing that the antiquated trial proceedings would not stand any where in the modern judicial system ???