Saturday December 13th, 2003 will go down in history as a day all Arabs will remember with bitterness and astonishment. The Iraqi strongman, who terrorized his country and neighbors for more than three decades, was seized by US forces dramatically without any resistance on his part. Unlike his two sons, who resisted till the very last bit of life in them, this has been a great disappointment to all those supporters he had scattered throughout the Arab world, who expected from the fallen leader.
The head of Iraq’s Interim Governing Council, Adnan Pachachi, described Saddam’s capture as despicable, adding “showing him being examined by the US military doctor was provocative to the entire Arab public – what makes me wonder is that why he did not resist [US forces] or at least try to commit suicide?”
General Nouri Al Nouri, a high ranked officer in the Iraqi Ministry of Interior, shared with Al Bawaba his ‘lack-of-surprise’ about capturing Saddam alive. “This is expected from a man who loves [his own] life…this was very obvious from the very beginning of his rule in Iraq. What made Saddam a legendary personality in the Arab world was American hostility towards him and his regime. The world media was scrambling in building a phony image of a defiant Saddam that played well in the hearts of the Arab audience. Regretfully, the media made him seem as 'the last man standing' against a powerful and heartless United States of America.”
Al Nouri added that “Saddam’s cooperation with the US soldiers proves his cowardly nature…which makes me very happy because this will prove to all Arabs who believed in him that he is actually not what they think he is or once was”.
Saddam’s rule of Iraq commenced in 1979 until US & UK troops swiftly toppled him and his regime last April. During his presidency, he was accused of using harsh measures against his opponents in addition to mass killings of his own people. He has also used chemical weapons to suppress a Kurdish uprising in the town of Halabja.
Ali Al Bayati, member of the Higher Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, asserted to Al Bawaba that “the Iraqi nation knows very well that Saddam was a coward, and if he had any courage he would have at least committed suicide…but no, he was captured like a scared rat – and that is the real Saddam.”
Last Saturday was a day for the world to remember, however not only because Saddam Hussein was captured, but because the US violated another principle of the Geneva Convention, which explicitly states how prisoners of war are to be treated. This act, however, seems to have been intentional as the US wanted to send a strong message to the Arab world - this is your hero and he is in our hands, surrendered and collaborating.
The news of Saddam’s capture was also of great importance to the Arab public as he is the first Arab modern-day leader to get captured and humiliated by the US army (or any other foreign army for that matter).
An interesting thought would be about what other Arab leaders are thinking now that their own eyes have been witness to such a tragic end of one of the most powerful and ruthless Arab leaders in modern history? (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
