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A LOOK AT THE REAL SADDAM HUSSAIN
by our Iraq monitor
On January 29, 2003
C-Span
picked up a transmission from Iraqi TV
(with weak but understandable English
translation). It covered a meeting
between Iraqi President Saddam Hussain and his
military commanders. Most
American
audiences would not have understood what
was going on. So, here is
an analytical summary:
1. President Saddam seemed to fit his stereotype
in western media at least on
one count. He was expensively and comfortably
dressed in western clothes,
clean shaven and looking smart. He was smoking a
cigar and kept stubbing it
in the ash tray. His hand, visibly, never shook.
This is a man with nerves of
steel and the impression he created was that he
is not going to run away.
2. The military commanders were from defense
units all over the country,
including air defense and naval units.
3. The commanders felt secure enough to meet all
together in one large room
with the President. Thus the idea that Saddam is
always hiding and seldom
shows his real self to more than two or three
people was easily debunked.
Here he was meeting ALL his commanders at one
time at a time when the U.S.
could attack at any moment. [At one stage Saddam
ordered that the windows be
opened because it was getting warm.]
4. If Saddam's commanders were interested in
carrying out a coup against him,
this was the ideal situation when they were ALL
together. Obviously, the
fighting forces of Iraq are united and loyal to
their country and their
president.
5. The Islamic re-formulation of the armed forces
seems to have proceeded.
EVERY COMMANDER started with
bismillah-hir-rahman-nir-Raheem (in the name Of
Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful) and asalamu
alaikum to which the
President unfailingly replied "walaikum asalam."
6. As in every Muslim country, the legend of the
Islamic resistance in
Afghanistan
has percolated into relatively
secular Iraq too. In response to
one commander's statement of steadfastness, the
President recounted the story
of the seven wounded mujahideen who took refuge
in a hospital in KANDAHAR.
They fought overwhelming American and Afghan
mercenary forces for a week,
room to room in the hospital, till finally the
Americans demolished the
hospital over them with air strikes. [Saddam
carefully added that "we" do not
necessarily share the ideology of those
fighters.]
3. Another commander referred to the generosity
of the poor people in his
area of command. Whereupon President Saddam
recounted the story of Hatim Tai,
the popular Islamic/Arab legend of the man who
had this beautiful horse. Some
visitors came to meet Hatim Tai. He had nothing
to feed them so he.....(the
rest of the story is well known).
4. Another officer thanked Saddam for building
ALL the people of his area NEW
HOMES because he found that they were living in
rickety old huts.
Some of the commanders were old and pudgy but
others were young and fiery.
These are the people who will face the American
onslaught. [250,000 American
troops supported by 800 planes are ready to
attack from the north and the
south. America plans to saturate Iraqi defenses
with 800 cruise missiles in
the first 48 hours of the attack, a bigger
concentration of firepower than
ever achieved before.]
These commanders may well turn out to be
martyrs.
At this time they seem to
be in no mood to surrender. Saddam's hands are
not shaking and the people are
with him.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
JORDANIANS CALL FOR RENUNCIATION OF AGREEMENT
WITH
ISRAEL
February 3. It was an unusual day in Amman,
Jordan. Several thousand
Jordanians demonstrated against the U.S. and
Israel and called on the
government to throw away the Jordanian peace and
recognition agreement with
the terrorist state of Israel. They chanted
support for Iraq and many carried
Iraqi flags.
It seems to have been a demonstration with
the permission of the regime
because the demonstrators also carried portraits
of King Abdullah, America's
puppet in Amman. The King, well briefed by the
CIA,
seems to be aware that
the people are boiling over with rage at the U.S
and Israel and wants to
provide a steam valve to the country.
[Egypt's
Mubarak
is also good at this
tactic.]
Earlier King Abdullah, hand-in-glove with
Israel, had no hesitation in
sending in tanks against the people of Maan city.
--------------------------------------------
LAST MONTH, the JORDANIAN REGIME SENTENCED A
MUSLIM AMERICAN TO DEATH FOR
PLOTTING TO HIT US AND ISRAELI TARGETS. The trial
was a farce and was carried
out by a special military tribunal. The accused
denied the accusations but
was sentenced regardless of lack of evidence.
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2003-02-05 Wed 06:35ct