It appears, as ISIS seize Iraq's Western border crossings, that Iraq is fracturing.
This should hardly come as a surprise given that the only way it was held together before was by a dictator who used the tools of the state to suppress dissent.
The only real surprise is that those who removed Saddam are surprised by the fracturing of Iraq.
Showing posts with label saddam hussein. Show all posts
Showing posts with label saddam hussein. Show all posts
Monday, June 23, 2014
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
History Repeating Itself?
It would appear, if reports in the media are true, that remnants of Saddam's regime are trying to make a comeback in at least the city of Tal Afar.
What was it Bush once said?
What was it Bush once said?
"Mission Accomplished!"
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
The Clusterfuck That Is Iraq
What did Blair and Bush really think would happen when they kicked out Saddam without a coherent and robust plan for restoring Iraq politically and economically after the war?
Friday, March 04, 2011
A Dictatorship Reborn
Despite deposing and executing Saddam Hussein, on the pretext of "democratising" Iraq, it seems that the US mission to bring "freedom" to the people of Iraq has failed.
The Washington Post reports that Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is using special forces to deal with demonstrations in Iraq:
"Witnesses in Baghdad and as far north as Kirkuk described watching last week as security forces in black uniforms, tracksuits and T-shirts roared up in trucks and Humvees, attacked protesters, rounded up others from cafes and homes and hauled them off, blindfolded, to army detention centres."
Out of the ashes of one dictatorship it seems that a new one is emerging.
As I have noted several times before, you cannot impose democracy on a society or country using the barrel of a gun.
The Washington Post reports that Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is using special forces to deal with demonstrations in Iraq:
"Witnesses in Baghdad and as far north as Kirkuk described watching last week as security forces in black uniforms, tracksuits and T-shirts roared up in trucks and Humvees, attacked protesters, rounded up others from cafes and homes and hauled them off, blindfolded, to army detention centres."
Out of the ashes of one dictatorship it seems that a new one is emerging.
As I have noted several times before, you cannot impose democracy on a society or country using the barrel of a gun.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Prison Without Trial
The BBC have a video report about the following:
"A report by the human rights group, Amnesty International, says that tens of thousands of people in Iraq are being detained in prisons without trial.
It says many of the detainees are being held for years often facing psychological and violent abuse."
Isn't that one of the reasons Saddam was overthrown?
"A report by the human rights group, Amnesty International, says that tens of thousands of people in Iraq are being detained in prisons without trial.
It says many of the detainees are being held for years often facing psychological and violent abuse."
Isn't that one of the reasons Saddam was overthrown?
Friday, August 06, 2010
Leaving Iraq To The Wolves
Tariq Aziz, Saddam Hussein's former deputy, has accused the US president of "leaving Iraq to the wolves" as a resulkt of the decision to withdraw combat troops during a period of increasing violence.
Aziz told The Guardian that the United States should stay in Iraq, in order to correct the mistakes it had made since the 2003 invasion.
"We are all victims of America and Britain.
They killed our country in many ways. When you make a mistake you need to correct a mistake, not leave Iraq to its death."
He went on to say:
"For 30 years Saddam built Iraq and now it is destroyed. There are more sick than before, more hungry.
The people don't have services. People are being killed every day in the tens, if not hundreds.
I was encouraged when [US President Barack Obama] was elected president, because I thought he was going to correct some of the mistakes of Bush. But Obama is a hypocrite. He is leaving Iraq to the wolves."
Aziz was jailed for 15 years in 2009 for murder, and given a seven-year term in August 2009 for his role in expelling Kurds from Iraq's north.
Aziz told The Guardian that the United States should stay in Iraq, in order to correct the mistakes it had made since the 2003 invasion.
"We are all victims of America and Britain.
They killed our country in many ways. When you make a mistake you need to correct a mistake, not leave Iraq to its death."
He went on to say:
"For 30 years Saddam built Iraq and now it is destroyed. There are more sick than before, more hungry.
The people don't have services. People are being killed every day in the tens, if not hundreds.
I was encouraged when [US President Barack Obama] was elected president, because I thought he was going to correct some of the mistakes of Bush. But Obama is a hypocrite. He is leaving Iraq to the wolves."
Aziz was jailed for 15 years in 2009 for murder, and given a seven-year term in August 2009 for his role in expelling Kurds from Iraq's north.
Monday, February 15, 2010
AWB To Settle Class Action
AWB Ltd, the Australian wheat exporter that paid kickbacks to Saddam Hussein, has agreed to pay $35M to settle the class action against it brought by shareholders in Australia.
Three class actions against the company in the USA have been dismissed.
Three class actions against the company in the USA have been dismissed.
Thursday, February 04, 2010
Smeargate
Sir Christopher Meyer, Britain's former ambassador in the US, has given Tony Blair a very publicy drubbing in an interview with The Independent.
Sir Christopher says that Blair, and his closest advisers, have used their evidence to the Iraq inquiry to smear those criticising the decision to taken Britain to war.
He noted that "turning on opposition was the modus operandi of the Blair administration".
"You turn on dissent, you distort the argument, you claim the other person has said something they never said, and then you seek to discredit it.
It's not only me that has had some of this.
It is their modus operandi.
Smear and smokescreen."
Sir Christopher was also not impressed with Blair's obsession with invading Iran:
"Blair's strategic approach to his evidence seemed to be a kind of double or quits.
In other words, it was to say no regrets, I'd do it again, and by the way if I was Prime Minister I'd do Iran also.
It's nonsense about Iran.
The strategic beneficiary of the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq has been Iran. It has enhanced the position of Iran in the region, there is no doubt about it at all.”
The fact that Blair has entrenched the idea that Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein were cut from the same cloth was extraordinary.
We've always known that Saddam Hussein had absolutely nothing to do with 9/11 and didn't like al-Qaeda."
Sir Christopher uses the polite phrase "sub-contracted" wrt Blair allowing Bush to make the decision about war, ie he is saying that Blair had in effect become a poodle of Bush.
It is a pity that all the now so very vocal critics of the war, who were in positions of power during the run up to war, did not speak up and come forward at the time.
Sir Christopher says that Blair, and his closest advisers, have used their evidence to the Iraq inquiry to smear those criticising the decision to taken Britain to war.
He noted that "turning on opposition was the modus operandi of the Blair administration".
"You turn on dissent, you distort the argument, you claim the other person has said something they never said, and then you seek to discredit it.
It's not only me that has had some of this.
It is their modus operandi.
Smear and smokescreen."
Sir Christopher was also not impressed with Blair's obsession with invading Iran:
"Blair's strategic approach to his evidence seemed to be a kind of double or quits.
In other words, it was to say no regrets, I'd do it again, and by the way if I was Prime Minister I'd do Iran also.
It's nonsense about Iran.
The strategic beneficiary of the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq has been Iran. It has enhanced the position of Iran in the region, there is no doubt about it at all.”
The fact that Blair has entrenched the idea that Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein were cut from the same cloth was extraordinary.
We've always known that Saddam Hussein had absolutely nothing to do with 9/11 and didn't like al-Qaeda."
Sir Christopher uses the polite phrase "sub-contracted" wrt Blair allowing Bush to make the decision about war, ie he is saying that Blair had in effect become a poodle of Bush.
It is a pity that all the now so very vocal critics of the war, who were in positions of power during the run up to war, did not speak up and come forward at the time.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
The Bleedin' Obvious
Lord Goldsmith, Labour's attorney general at the time of the Iraq war, has told the Chilcot inquiry into the Iraq war that he believed that there was no immediate threat from Saddam Hussein that justified the use of force.
It was obvious at the time to all and sundry, even those who were not top flight lawyers, that Saddam posed no credible immediate threat.
Goldsmith then went on to say that, in his view, regime change was not a legitimate basis for the invasion.
Then why did he materially alter his legal advice in the run up to war, and perform a U turn?
It was obvious at the time to all and sundry, even those who were not top flight lawyers, that Saddam posed no credible immediate threat.
Goldsmith then went on to say that, in his view, regime change was not a legitimate basis for the invasion.
Then why did he materially alter his legal advice in the run up to war, and perform a U turn?
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Blair Got It Wrong
Jonathan Powell, Tony Blair's aide during his time in office, told the Chilcot Inquiry into the Iraq war that Blair's assumption that Saddam Hussein had WMD was (in the cruel light of reality) wrong.
Blair went to war based on a long-standing "assumption" that Saddam Hussein still possessed weapons of mass destruction, because he had used them in the past.
Blair was once described at school as being lazy when it came to details. True to form when deciding to go to war, rather than use up to date detailed intelligence, he based is decision on past assumptions.
Powell told the inquiry that intelligence on Saddam's WMD was not the pivotal factor in the decision to go to war in Iraq.
Powell is quoted in the Telegraph telling the inquiry:
"Iraq didn't have weapons of mass destruction. We were wrong. The intelligence was wrong.
When our forces went in, we were absolutely amazed to discover there weren't any weapons of mass destruction."
When asked if he had any concerns about the intelligence not being up to date, Powell said:
"We had an assumption, and we had that assumption because Saddam Hussein had lied about using WMD and he had lied about getting rid of them. We had bombed Iraq in 1998 on that basis and it would have taken some quite strong evidence to suggest he had got rid of them.
We didn't really have any doubts about it and I don't think other people had any doubts about it."
Beware leaders who rush to war without doubts, they will lead themselves and their people to destruction.
Blair went to war based on a long-standing "assumption" that Saddam Hussein still possessed weapons of mass destruction, because he had used them in the past.
Blair was once described at school as being lazy when it came to details. True to form when deciding to go to war, rather than use up to date detailed intelligence, he based is decision on past assumptions.
Powell told the inquiry that intelligence on Saddam's WMD was not the pivotal factor in the decision to go to war in Iraq.
Powell is quoted in the Telegraph telling the inquiry:
"Iraq didn't have weapons of mass destruction. We were wrong. The intelligence was wrong.
When our forces went in, we were absolutely amazed to discover there weren't any weapons of mass destruction."
When asked if he had any concerns about the intelligence not being up to date, Powell said:
"We had an assumption, and we had that assumption because Saddam Hussein had lied about using WMD and he had lied about getting rid of them. We had bombed Iraq in 1998 on that basis and it would have taken some quite strong evidence to suggest he had got rid of them.
We didn't really have any doubts about it and I don't think other people had any doubts about it."
Beware leaders who rush to war without doubts, they will lead themselves and their people to destruction.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Darth Vader
Sir John Sawers, now head of MI6 but once a close adviser to Tony Blair, told the Chilcot Inquiry into the Iraq war that foolish decisions to disband the Iraqi army and dismiss thousands of members of Saddam Hussein's Ba'ath party were taken by the US alone without taking into account British advice.
These decisions, as predicted at the time by those with some understanding of Iraq, proved to be disastrous and significantly contributed to the chaos that followed the ousting of Saddam.
Sawers said that the decisions were taken by Paul Bremer, US head of the Coalition Provisional Authority, on the basis of "pre-agreed Washington policy".
Sawers was also less than complimentary about the attire of US soldiers, which he believed caused a lack of rapport with the locals:
"the posture of the US army in their tanks, in their Darth Vader kit with the wraparound sunglasses and helmets and flak jackets and everything else. There was no real rapport between the US army and the ordinary citizens."
However, whilst it may satisfy Labour party politics to blame the US, the UK had the choice not to become involved in this folly; Labour only have themselves to blame for this mess.
These decisions, as predicted at the time by those with some understanding of Iraq, proved to be disastrous and significantly contributed to the chaos that followed the ousting of Saddam.
Sawers said that the decisions were taken by Paul Bremer, US head of the Coalition Provisional Authority, on the basis of "pre-agreed Washington policy".
Sawers was also less than complimentary about the attire of US soldiers, which he believed caused a lack of rapport with the locals:
"the posture of the US army in their tanks, in their Darth Vader kit with the wraparound sunglasses and helmets and flak jackets and everything else. There was no real rapport between the US army and the ordinary citizens."
However, whilst it may satisfy Labour party politics to blame the US, the UK had the choice not to become involved in this folly; Labour only have themselves to blame for this mess.
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
Blair Knew There Were No WMDs
Sir John Scarlett, head of the Joint Intelligence Committee in the run-up to the Iraq war, told the Chilcot Inquiry into the war that Tony Blair knew that last-minute intelligence revealed that Saddam Hussein had probably dismantled his chemical and biological weaponry.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Deja Vu
Isn't this what the so called "regime change" meant to stop?
Iraqi shoe-thrower: I was tortured with electric shocks
Iraqi shoe-thrower: I was tortured with electric shocks
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Aziz Jailed
Tariq Aziz, Saddam Hussein's right hand man, was found guilty yesterday of crimes against humanity and jailed for 15 years.
Watban Ibrahim al-Hassan and Sabawi Ibrahim, director of public security (half-brothers of Saddam) were sentenced to death on the same charges.
Aziz will appeal against the sentence. However, he still faces charges for the killing and arrest of hundreds of Kurds in the early 1980s.
Watban Ibrahim al-Hassan and Sabawi Ibrahim, director of public security (half-brothers of Saddam) were sentenced to death on the same charges.
Aziz will appeal against the sentence. However, he still faces charges for the killing and arrest of hundreds of Kurds in the early 1980s.
Monday, September 08, 2008
Abu Ghraib To Reopen
Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq is to reopen as a prison in a year, and a facility will be constructed within the prison to act as a museum documenting Saddam Hussein's crimes.
Abu Ghraib has not held prisoners since 2006. A section of the site will be converted into a museum, featuring execution chamber exhibits and other displays of torture tools used by Saddam's regime.
However, there will be no documentation of the abuse carried out there by US military personnel that was revealed in 2004.
Iraq's deputy justice minister, Busho Ibrahim, is quoted by The Associated Press as saying that the American brutality was "nothing" compared with the violence and atrocities of Saddam and the Baath party.
"There is evidence of the crimes (Saddam committed) such as the hooks used to dangle prisoners, tools used to beat and torture prisoners and ... the execution chambers in which 50 or 100 people were killed at once."
Abu Ghraib has not held prisoners since 2006. A section of the site will be converted into a museum, featuring execution chamber exhibits and other displays of torture tools used by Saddam's regime.
However, there will be no documentation of the abuse carried out there by US military personnel that was revealed in 2004.
Iraq's deputy justice minister, Busho Ibrahim, is quoted by The Associated Press as saying that the American brutality was "nothing" compared with the violence and atrocities of Saddam and the Baath party.
"There is evidence of the crimes (Saddam committed) such as the hooks used to dangle prisoners, tools used to beat and torture prisoners and ... the execution chambers in which 50 or 100 people were killed at once."
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Sanctions Breached
Mabey & Johnson, a British bridge construction company, has admitted that it may have made corrupt payments to Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq to win an export order.
Mabey & Johnson have been under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office for more than a year.
In its recent annual results Mabey said that in April this year, it "disclosed to the SFO evidence that had come to light suggesting that in 2002 the company may have indirectly made two payments to the Iraqi regime in breach of UN sanctions".
Mabey added that it "has recently been notified of allegations that certain historical contracts may have been procured through corrupt acts".
The company has called in a firm of City lawyers, Herbert Smith, to carry out its own inquiry into all the corruption allegations. New managers have been installed at the firm.
The UN report in sanctions busting alleges that Mabey paid a $202K kickback between 2001 and 2003, and was given a $3.6M contract by the Iraqis.
Mabey & Johnson have been under investigation by the Serious Fraud Office for more than a year.
In its recent annual results Mabey said that in April this year, it "disclosed to the SFO evidence that had come to light suggesting that in 2002 the company may have indirectly made two payments to the Iraqi regime in breach of UN sanctions".
Mabey added that it "has recently been notified of allegations that certain historical contracts may have been procured through corrupt acts".
The company has called in a firm of City lawyers, Herbert Smith, to carry out its own inquiry into all the corruption allegations. New managers have been installed at the firm.
The UN report in sanctions busting alleges that Mabey paid a $202K kickback between 2001 and 2003, and was given a $3.6M contract by the Iraqis.
Wednesday, August 06, 2008
The Way of The World
The veracity of the justification by the Whitehouse for going to war in Iraq has taken another knock.
The journalist Ron Suskind has published a book "The Way of The World" in which he claims that the White House ordered the CIA to forge and backdate a handwritten letter from the head of Iraqi intelligence to Saddam Hussein, to link the Iraq regime to Al Qaeda.
"The White House had concocted a fake letter from Habbush to Saddam, backdated to July 1, 2001. It said that 9/11 ringleader Mohammad Atta had actually trained for his mission in Iraq –- thus showing, finally, that there was an operational link between Saddam and al Qaeda, something the vice president's office had been pressing CIA to prove since 9/11 as a justification to invade Iraq.
There is no link."
The Whitehouse has stated that the claim is nonsense.
Whatever the truth or otherwise of the allegations, no matter what evidence is presented, there will be those who believe them and those who don't.
The journalist Ron Suskind has published a book "The Way of The World" in which he claims that the White House ordered the CIA to forge and backdate a handwritten letter from the head of Iraqi intelligence to Saddam Hussein, to link the Iraq regime to Al Qaeda.
"The White House had concocted a fake letter from Habbush to Saddam, backdated to July 1, 2001. It said that 9/11 ringleader Mohammad Atta had actually trained for his mission in Iraq –- thus showing, finally, that there was an operational link between Saddam and al Qaeda, something the vice president's office had been pressing CIA to prove since 9/11 as a justification to invade Iraq.
There is no link."
The Whitehouse has stated that the claim is nonsense.
Whatever the truth or otherwise of the allegations, no matter what evidence is presented, there will be those who believe them and those who don't.
Monday, July 28, 2008
The House of Saddam
BBC2 at 9:00PM this Wednesday begins broadcasting the House of Saddam, a four part dramatisation of Saddam's time in power.
The series starts in 1979, when Saddam seized the presidency, and ends in 2006 with his execution.
Israeli actor Igal Naor plays Saddam.
Naor said he was asked for blessings by ordinary Arabs, as he filmed House of Saddam in Tunisia.
"We were shooting a few walkabouts that Saddam used to do in the streets of Baghdad.
It involved hundreds of extras and a lot of ordinary Tunisians. Every time I got out of my trailer people were coming to me as if they had never heard of Saddam's death.
They acted as if I was Saddam himself, calling me by his name, asking for my blessing, and wishing me victory in the war.
I checked with the production whether someone asked them to do this. The answer was no."
Nowt so queer as folk!
The series starts in 1979, when Saddam seized the presidency, and ends in 2006 with his execution.
Israeli actor Igal Naor plays Saddam.
Naor said he was asked for blessings by ordinary Arabs, as he filmed House of Saddam in Tunisia.
"We were shooting a few walkabouts that Saddam used to do in the streets of Baghdad.
It involved hundreds of extras and a lot of ordinary Tunisians. Every time I got out of my trailer people were coming to me as if they had never heard of Saddam's death.
They acted as if I was Saddam himself, calling me by his name, asking for my blessing, and wishing me victory in the war.
I checked with the production whether someone asked them to do this. The answer was no."
Nowt so queer as folk!
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Knit A Saddam Doll
Those of you with a penchant for knitting may, or probably may not, be interested to know that there is a knitting pattern available for a Saddam doll.
Rachael Matthews has written a book which contains designs for a number of dictators, including; Saddam Hussein, Pol Pot, Hitler and Idi Amin.
Why would anyone want to knit a dictator?
Rachael Matthews has written a book which contains designs for a number of dictators, including; Saddam Hussein, Pol Pot, Hitler and Idi Amin.
Why would anyone want to knit a dictator?
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