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Why Saddam Hussein’s Execution kept quiet
and secret?
5.3.2007
By Dana Berzinjy, KURDNET Contributing Writer,
Sydney-Australia |
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March 5, 2007
By Dana Berzinjy, eKurd.net
I believe the execution of Saddam Hussein, the
former Iraqi president (dictator), was a result of
revenge which may have been carried out by Muqtada
al-Sadir group, the head of al-Mahdi Army which is
responsible for killing hundreds of Sunnis in Iraq.
Saddam Hussein was a broken man according to the
Iraqi National Security Adviser Mouwafak al-Rubaie,
who told the BBC that Saddam Hussein went to the
gallows calmly. According to some sources, 20 people
were there during the execution including five
hangmen.
The video clearly proves that the execution carried
out in a Shiite sectarian religious rite. This was
also noticed by many reporters. From the video one
can hear guards, which were repeatedly saying, “Long
live Muhammad Baqir al-Sadir.” Muhammad al-Sadir was
Muqtada al-Sadir’s father-in-law who was allegedly
executed by Saddam Hussein’s regime. The nature of
the execution also noticed in the timing of the
execution. Saddam was executed on the first day of
the holy Eid of Adha, which millions of Sunni
Muslims perceived it as an insult to their belief,
in addition, according to Article 290 (No 23 of
1971) of the “Iraqi definitions of punishments for
crimes”, Saddam’s execution during Eid, as it was
reported by the Kurdish online Awene, was illegal.
This article states, “No verdict should implemented
during the official holidays or religious
festivals.” Saddam Hussein was a Sunni Muslim by
faith; therefore, according to this article, he
should have not been executed during Eid, which is
also a Sunni holy occasion.
The place of the execution may also add to this
claim. Saddam was executed in the “Section 5” of his
“Military Intelligence” building. This was the place
were members of the pro-Iranian Shiite group, al-Dawa,
were executed by Saddam Hussein’s regime. Whether
Muqtada al-Sadir group kidnapped Saddam remained
unknown, the Iraqi authority should investigate this
matter further.
Saddam's quick execution is perhaps the greatest
travesty to happen for the Kurds in their written
history. It was a good opportunity for the crimes
carried by the former Iraqi Government against Kurds
to be answered; this was the only day for the Kurds,
which was a happy day as all Kurds had seen
suffering in the past. This was a chance for the
crimes acted upon the Kurds to be discovered and
answered by the former Iraqi dictator and his aides,
as everyone was able to see the trial around the
world. It was an excellent chance to show to the
world how the Kurds were suffering by the bloody
regime. Peace, and justice to honor these people can
only do this. It was a good opportunity to recognize
the Kurdish Genocide. An opportunity to remember
those people that died under the devil, and a chance
to make sure that this never happens again. When
Saddam was executed he took all the answers with him
to his grave. Saddam got away with the matters of
genocide easily. He did not face the judgment until
the end of the trial with the world to see for his
bad action and his behavior against the Kurds. He
was not marked as guilty for a quarter of a million
deaths he had on his hands and the millions
suffered. He should have stayed and faced the
humiliation in front of the world for all his
actions. But unfortunately, another page in the
Kurdish history is lost. We missed another
opportunity, another dark page rewrites itself,
another young life is lost and another sunny day is
faded in the rainy day.
This tells the world that the Kurdish struggle was
not given a good value and recognition by the Iraqi
High Court. Was the Kurdish struggle insignificant
and unworthy to Muqtada al-Sadir’s group? Why they
couldn't wait some more days after Eid to hang
Saddam. It tells the world that Kurdish suffering
was not much, and that Saddam wasn't such a bad man
since he was only charged for killing around 148
people. I believe by doing this Kurds were cheated
again by internal and out side enemies. For
instance, an Iraqi Shiite Cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr
anti US and the Kurds said that the Iraqi Kurds
should not identify themselves as residents of the
Kurdistan Region. He had also said that the Article
140 from Iraqi permanent Constitution that embraces
the normalization of the city of Kirkuk. Darraji
said they strongly reject the article and return of
the city of Kirkuk within Kurdish Regional
Government. I believe someone like Al-Sadr is an
agent of Iranian Government because he acts like an
enemy to Iraqi Federal Government and the Kurdish
Regional Government, because he is against the
return of the 250,000 Kurds to the city of Kirkuk
and other country towns which they were forced by
the former Iraqi dictator to leave their homes and
farms to the Arabs that the dictator settled them in
the region in the Kurdish land.
When the new Iraqi security plan started last week
Muqtada al-Sadir the head of al-Mahdi Army fled from
Iraq to Iran and disappeared. This kind of
connection with the foreign countries such as Iran
proves that Al-Sadir was a trader and a spy against
his own people and government for the benefit of
foreigners. He was against the united Iraq,
Federation, Democracy and the rights of others. On
the other hand, Barzan Ibrahim, Saddam’s half
brother and former intelligence chief and Awad Al
-Bandar head of Iraq’s Revolutionary Court had been
found guilty with Saddam in the killing of 148
Shiite Muslims after an assassination attempt in
1982, on the former leader in the town of Dujail. So
the government announced on Monday 15.01.2007, that
the hangings for both took a place according to
Associated Press Writer. Barzan and Awad were not
just guilty in killing 148 Shiite Muslims even
though they were guilty for killing thousands of
Kurds, and Iraqis, but why they were accused and
made guilty just for Dujail’s killings. Here again
all Iraqi ethnic backgrounds were cheated and misled
by this decision.
I want to ask, were where the Kurdish leaders at the
time before Saddam’s execution? They were aware of
the situation and they did not do anything about it.
What about all the ministers in Baghdad were they
representing the Kurdish people? Who made them to
keep it quiet about the Kurdish Genocide?
According to the Kurd Net Web Site the 2 local
newspapers published the names of 162 people who
allegedly informed on fellow Kurds for Saddam
Hussein’s mukhabarat intelligence service after the
1991 Kurdish uprising. The service tried to recruit
members were close to the leaders from the two main
parties which are Kurdistan Democratic Party and
Patriotic Union of Kurdistan but I don’t want to
name any one. Now the Kurdish political parties and
the President of Regional Kurdistan Massud Barzani
ordered to make a committee to investigate the
allegations. Maybe that was one of the factors that
caused Saddam’s execution to be kept secret. Who
knows? How unrealistic and unfair to see that the
death count he got charged for was very less than
what he did against the Kurds. Lives of over
millions of Kurds and Iraqis are worth less than one
Shiite. They did not give Kurds the chance to try
Saddam on charges of genocide. It was as if that as
soon as Saddam was found guilty of killing 148
Arabs, justice was served but the Kurdish nation had
many genocide crimes acted upon them but their
matter was ignored. Our matter was hidden away under
a blanket and the genocide was not paid any
attention. What about our 4000 villages and country
towns, which were, destroyed who was responsible?
When someone reads history books to see that Saddam
was charged with the murders of around 148 people.
Oh, Saddam wasn't such a bad man he just did one
small crime in Dujail. If this is the case how could
you prove that Saddam was a criminal and committed
genocide against Kurds, because eventually he was
never charged for genocide against Kurds? For
example, if someone like Hermann Gring, Hitler's
second-in-command, was tried and executed only for
charges of crimes against humanity for killing a few
dozen French civilians involved in the French
resistance in the Nuremburg trials of 1946 Normandy.
If he was never stood in a court and was not charged
for the crimes against killing millions of Jews. If
the Jewish holocaust kept secret in the history.
What would you say about that? But this happened
against the wishes of the Kurdish people on December
30, 2006. I was shocked when he was executed for
killing 148 people but he was not charged for
unfamous Anfal, using chemical wopeans against
civilians in the city of Halabja (South of
Kurdistan/ Kurdistan of Iraq), used chemical wopeans
against the city of Serdasht in East
Kurdistan/Kurdistan of Iran, and killing 182,000
civilians including women, children, sick people and
men in the campaign against the innocent civilian
Kurds in Iraqi Kurdistan.
I am sure that his execution politically forced and
political leaders who pushed the matter forward.
However, the reasons for his sudden execution
remained unanswered and will stay a mystery. There
were so many western countries behind this for
instance, America, France and Friends and enemies
who might be scared of the dirty secrets and truths
that would come up during the trials. For example
Ronald Regan spoon feeding Saddam. Maybe it was
Anti-Kurds and Enemies that are scared of their
dirty political games. Maybe it was something to do
with the American new plan in Iraq. Maybe it was
something to do with American election and the
competition of power between George Bush's Republic
party with Democrat, or Arab racism and fascist
groups within Iraq or our neighboring countries.
Whatever the reason was, I believe and I have no
doubt about it, that politics was the major factor
that played in the dirty politics against the Kurds.
Finally, I believe that Saddam’s cousin Chemical Ali
Majeed, who faces charges of genocide against Kurds
the main enforcer of the Anfal campaign, he said on
a tape that played in the court; “I will strike them
with chemical weapons and kill them all and damn
anyone who is going to say anything,” a voice
identified by prosecutors as “Chemical Ali” Hassan
Al-Majeed is heard saying, and five other Baath
party officials are still on trial for their roles
in the 1988 Anfal(Spoils of War) military campaign
in northern southern Kurdistan. I hope that everyone
had a role in Anfal campaign to share Saddam’s fate
on the gallows.
Dana Berzinjy, Sydney-Australia, The author can
be reached at ( dara_dar @ yahoo.com.au )
Bibliography
Qassim Abdul Zahra, 15.01.2007, Saddam half brother,
ex-official hanged, Associated Press Writer.
Aya Biye, 02.01. 2007, Saddam’s execution: Greatest
travesty to occur for Kurds, (KurdishMedia).
KurdishMedia, 02.01.2007, Sadam’s execution was a
sectarian reprisal, local media.
The Kurdish Globe, Shiite Cleric ‘Sadr’ Rejects Name
of Kurdistan Region, 10.12.2006 published by Kurd
Net Web Site.
Kurd Net, 08.01.2007, Iraq: Court Drops Kurd Charges
Against Saddam..
Kurd Net, 03.10.2006, Saddam Spy Allegations Cause
Furor Among Iraqi Kurds, by Meredith Buel, Erbil.
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