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| Iraq |
| Saddam sons called ’martyrs’ |
| 2003-07-24 |
| There goes the neighborhood. A day after U.S. forces waged a fierce gunbattle that ended with the bodies of Saddam Hussein’s two eldest sons being carried out of a villa here, both the ruined house and the anger of neighbors still smoldered. Most residents of the upscale al-Falah neighborhood where the U.S. raid took place said they were surprised Uday Hussein, 39, and his brother Qusay, 37, had been living in their midst. Many expressed sympathy for the old regime, but whether they were talking out of love or fear of the Baathists was not known. They were very quiet men. Kept to themselves. Always said hello in the morning... ’’These are the president’s sons. We love them. We love Saddam Hussein,’’ said Arfan Khalid, 28, a shopkeeper. ’’Those who reported their hideout to the Americans, I will slaughter them with my bare hands.’’ Suuuuuuure you will... The house where the brothers died was owned by Nawaf al-Zaydan Muhhamad, who claimed to be a cousin of Saddam.U.S. officials say an Iraqi informant tipped off soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division that the brothers were hiding in the yellow- and maroon-tiled villa. I’ve heard that it was the gracious houseguest cousin. So I guess he’s your boy, Arfan. The United States had offered a $15 million reward for information leading to the capture of either man. The informant is expected to collect $30 million for leading U.S. forces to both sons -- a vast sum in a country where the average Iraqi income is the equivalent of $2,500 a year. Will they drive up like Publishers Clearing House with the big cardboard check for 30 mil? When a small contingent of soldiers arrived in the neighborhood Tuesday morning, residents said they expected a routine weapons search. After the occupants of the villa refused to let the soldiers inside, the patrol withdrew and called for reinforcements. An hour later, dozens of soldiers surrounded the house.Army psychological operations soldiers speaking in Arabic and using loudspeakers asked whether any women or children were inside and ordered everyone to come out. Muhhamad and his son emerged with their hands on their heads. No one followed. Military officials said people in the villa shot when the soldiers tried to enter the home. Residents said U.S. troops were first to shoot. All agree, however, that it was a ferocious fight. The arrival of helicopter gunships turned the tide, Iraqis who watched the battle said. The gunships fired missiles at the villa, and the shooting from inside stopped. That’ll do it. ’’These are martyrs. They went to paradise,’’ farmer Muhammed Ibrahim, 35, said of Qusay and Uday. ’’The Americans are heathens. We sympathize with our Muslim brothers.’’ Feel free to point out anyone who wishes to join them, Farmer Mo. Including yourself if you want. Others were glad to be rid of Saddam’s heirs.Two doors down from the villa, Elham Ibrahim Al-Katib, 50, said she hid in her home with her four children as rocket fragments and bullets splattered her steel gate.’’I felt that death was around us,’’ she said. Still, ’’It is really a victory for the Iraqis, killing these two guys.’’ So I guess not everbody in the neighborhood we’re big fans. Most people in the neighborhood east of the Tigris River had no idea Uday and Qusay were holed up next door. But one neighbor had an inkling something was up. Mahmood Fawzi, 23, a computer engineer who lives three blocks from the villa, said his sister told him last Thursday that she saw Qusay driving a gray BMW with Tikrit license plates. ’’We thought it was a joke,’’ he said. Wonder if it had an "I Brake For Babes" bumper sticker on it? But Fawzi noticed unusual things. The wife and children of Muhhamad, the villa’s owner, suddenly left. He also noticed that Muhhamad, who watered his lawn every day, stopped coming out to his garden. Uday and Qusay starring in "The Things That Wouldn’t Leave". Iraqis stared Wednesday at soldiers guarding the villa behind barbed wire while military investigators searched inside. There was little left of the house. One of its three front pillars was shorn nearly in half. Aluminum window frames hung from gaping holes.Army civil affairs soldiers roamed the neighborhood, assessing damage to homes and promising compensation. US dollars! Get your US dollars here!!! ’’We explained that we tried to get them to come out peacefully, but they made it clear that they wanted to fight,’’ said Army Spc. Samantha Ward, 32, of El Paso. We can do that. Any gunships around? The home of Abdul Jawad Saleh, 45, and his wife, Yamama Abdul Wahab, 42, is directly behind the battered villa.Almost every window in their house had been shattered and every wall cracked. ’’This is the work of the Americans,’’ said Saleh, as glass crunched beneath his feet in a hallway. The retired Iraqi air force general said, ’’This was not militarily necessary. They used too much force.’’ Since he’s a retired Iraqi Air Force general, I’d probably take anything he has to say about military necessity with a truckload of salt. Here’s your check, get lost. |
| Posted by:tu3031 |
| #19 Either they're dead, or my watch has stopped. Ah, thank you... |
| Posted by: mojo 2003-7-24 10:21:54 PM |
| #18 Bones, Spock, Scottie. You must be right. Four to beam up Mr. Sulu. |
| Posted by: Captain Kirk 2003-7-24 7:29:56 PM |
| #17 Captain, I usin' full warp power! And they are still dead! The engines can't take anymore! |
| Posted by: Scottie 2003-7-24 7:28:26 PM |
| #16 Captain, I must concur with the doctor on this. I tried doing a Vulcan mind link, and it didn't work. They are most definitely dead. |
| Posted by: Mr. Spock 2003-7-24 7:27:12 PM |
| #15 "They're dead Jim." |
| Posted by: Dr. McCoy 2003-7-24 7:15:24 PM |
| #14 OP, what happened to the smile and the candybar??? |
| Posted by: Rafael 2003-7-24 7:02:53 PM |
| #13 I think it's about time to instill a little fear into the Iraqi psyche. I think we should remove all the people from Fallajah, and start sending B-52's over, armed with "dumb" 500lb bombs - one every 20 minutes, for about eight days. After that, let the people back into "their" city. After they see the rubble "up close and personal", ask them how much they "love" sadsack. Tell them that if there's any more trouble, we won't remove the people the next time we feel the need to engage in urban 'renewal'. |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2003-7-24 6:56:56 PM |
| #12 The NY Times reported Wednesday that the cousin had done time in prison for asserting his relationship to Hussein. Love the Publishers Clearing House image! |
| Posted by: Sharon in NYC 2003-7-24 3:47:23 PM |
| #11 several dozen Iraqis in civilian clothes and armed with wooden clubs. "That's no wooden club, it's a truncheon!" |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-7-24 2:43:36 PM |
| #10 Interestingly enough, the American allegedly trucked in some Iraqis to disperse the chanting, pro-Saddam crowd according to this WP article: The protesters dispersed without incident after the Americans trucked in several dozen Iraqis in civilian clothes and armed with wooden clubs. They seemed friendly and their presence was enough to disperse the crowd as the call to prayers went up from the nearby mosque. |
| Posted by: Dar 2003-7-24 2:35:03 PM |
| #9 There may also be an element of self-parody involved, in the sense that interviewees are tweaking the reporters by deliberately exaggerating the pro-Saddam rhetoric. Since it's unsafe to say anything against Saddam, Iraqis providing interviews may be providing quotes so overblown that the reader has to conclude they're making fun of gullible reporters. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2003-7-24 12:42:16 PM |
| #8 "These are martyrs. They went to paradise," farmer Muhammed Ibrahim, 35, said of Qusay and Uday. Call 'em anything you want and believe anything you want, pal, as long as they're dead. Attention All Journalists: I'm not impressed by how many ignorant fools you can find to interview, or by what they say. |
| Posted by: Tom 2003-7-24 12:13:17 PM |
| #7 ZF: Good analysis. I would add that reporters are too lazy to learn Arabic and that most Iraqis that are educated enough to speak English probably are Baathists or had Baath ties. |
| Posted by: 11A5S 2003-7-24 11:46:57 AM |
| #6 whether they were talking out of love or fear of the Baathists was not known. Both. They wouldn't be living in the upscale al-Falah neighborhood if they were Saddam's official opposition in Iraq's parliament. Even if Sammy was killed, they would have to give him a complete physical exam before they believed it. |
| Posted by: Rafael 2003-7-24 11:40:26 AM |
| #5 They just released the pictures. They look dead to me. |
| Posted by: tu3031 2003-7-24 11:39:30 AM |
| #4 Time to start rumors that the brothers were incestuous sadomasichistic gay lovers. That one of them apparantly committed suicide when he realized they'd been found out (he was the one found wearing a bra and panties by the 101st). Time to taint the martyrs with a good dose of American Jerry Springer style bullcrap. Might give the Iraqi people a laugh to degrade the villianous bastards. |
| Posted by: Yank 2003-7-24 11:21:06 AM |
| #3 I know this is entertainment, so in that spirit... Just the juicy Iraqi quotes - which speak volumes... "Those who reported their hideout to the Americans, I will slaughter them with my bare hands." "These are martyrs. They went to paradise," farmer Muhammed Ibrahim, 35, said of Qusay and Uday. "The Americans are heathens. We sympathize with our Muslim brothers." "This is the work of the Americans," said Saleh, as glass crunched beneath his feet in a hallway. The retired Iraqi air force general said, "This was not militarily necessary. They used too much force." Sweet. And that's a wrap. BTW, I think the Iraqi AF Gen'l prolly retired at the beginning of Gulf War I. To stay in business, he would've needed to defect to Iran. |
| Posted by: PD 2003-7-24 11:01:07 AM |
| #2 As noted before, this house is in a pricey, upscale neighborhood. The houseowner was living off "slop from the Hussein trough", and he's got a retired Iraqi Air Force general as a neighbor. Any fretting and fuming from these assclowns needs to be taken with a grain of salt, 'cause their glory days are over. |
| Posted by: Dar 2003-7-24 10:52:24 AM |
| #1 Saddam's henchmen are still on the loose - if the press wants a for-attribution quote, what the heck do they expect to get? There is no downside to saying negative things about American troops - we don't kill people based on what they say. Saddam's goons do - so the bias is going to be all one way - anti-American. It's what statisticians call selection bias due to a combination of several things - (1) most journalists are anti-American and want to demoralize the American public, not to mention gloat at American failure, (2) Iraqis supporting Saddam are willing to speak for attribution because there is no downside and potential rewards from Saddam for helping his cause and (3) Iraqis supporting the US are unwilling to speak for attribution because of fear of Saddam's goons. Hence all the negative feedback. |
| Posted by: Zhang Fei 2003-7-24 10:50:37 AM |