|
Kurdish Victims of Chemical Ali Celebrate
His Impending Execution
7.9.2007
|
|
|
|
September 7, 2007
Erbil-Hewler, Kurdistan region (Iraq), -- An
Iraqi appeals court on Tuesday [September 4th]
upheld death sentences for Ali Hassan
al-Majid, the man known as "Chemical Ali," and two
other lieutenants of Saddam Hussein. All were
convicted of crimes against humanity for their roles
in massacres of Kurds two decades ago. VOA's
correspondent spoke to a number of surviving victims
of these massacres who are celebrating what they say
is justice long delayed.
Nazreen Omar Hoffman was three months pregnant with
her son when her Kurdish village was attacked. She
survived, but her husband and 14 other family
members were killed. Hoffman says words cannot
describe how she felt when she heard the news that
the man responsible for the attack will soon be
executed. "I took my kid's hands and I was dancing
and singing. It was justice. We could feel it."
Abdullah Jabar was only five years old when his
father was killed. But he too was overcome with
emotion when he heard that Chemical Ali would be
executed.
"It is hard to think that justice will finally be
done, especially for a man that killed your father,
your cousins, everything."
The Iraqi appeals court ruled that Ali Hassan al-Majid
and his two co-defendants will be executed within 30
days. Ali was Saddam Hussein's cousin and once among
the most feared men in Iraq. He was one of the
architects of Operation Anfal, a series of
deportations and mass killings campaigns that killed
as many as 182,000 Kurds in the 1980s. He earned the
nickname Chemical Ali for allegedly ordering the
poison gas attack that killed more than 5,000 Kurds
in the Halabja in 1988. |
Ali Hassan al-Majid, first cousin of executed
dictator Saddam Hussein and also known as 'Chemical
Ali', 'Butcher of Kurdistan' sentenced to death over Kurdish genocide, AP
Abdullah Jabar (L) Nazreen Omar Hoffman (R), The
surviving victims of the
massacres. Photo.VOA |
|
Chnar Abdullah heads the Kurdish Anfal Ministry that
provides assistance to Ali's victims. She says his
execution is an important public acknowledgment of
the atrocities committed against the Kurds. "The
people, the victims, will never forget.
Everyday the pain is fresh in their minds and they
cannot forget and maybe cannot forgive. What we want
to do now is make the case known to all people, all
nations, all countries."
Abdullah says Ali's execution is ultimately a
hopeful sign that even after 20 years, justice can
prevail.
voanews com
Top |
Kurd Net
does not take credit for and is not responsible for the content of news
information on this page
|
® 